Second-half turnaround leads Thunder to 107-102 win over Spurs

The Oklahoma City Thunder closed out the first half of the season in style Thursday night, knocking off the San Antonio Spurs 107-102.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander once again dazzled for Oklahoma City (15-21) and he spurred an impressive second half that saw the Thunder outscore the Spurs 57-41. He scored a game-high 33 points, including 20 after the break.

OKC started strong, but hit a wall in the second quarter, leading to a 61-50 deficit at halftime.

The Thunder were efficient during the opening 12 minutes, going 10-for-21 from the floor, including 6-for-12 from three-point range, with six assists. But, they went just 6-for-20 in the second quarter, including 1-for-10 from deep.

The Spurs (18-14) shot over 53% in the second quarter and dominated on the glass, out-rebounding OKC 16-8. They also scored 16 points in the paint and carried the momentum into halftime.

Oklahoma City answered after the break, dropping 31 points in the third quarter while holding San Antonio to 23. Gilgeous-Alexander fueled the run with 13 points while Luguentz Dort and Isaiah Roby chipped in with six apiece.

The Thunder kept rolling down the stretch, ending on a high note with a 26-18 run.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored seven in the final 7:35. Justin Jackson and Kenrich Williams added a combined 14 points to help close out the Spurs for the second time in the teams’ last two meetings.

Mike Muscala played a major factor for OKC as well, scoring 18 points with seven rebounds off the bench. His spacing gave the Spurs trouble and allowed the Thunder to score 50 points in the paint.

DeMar DeRozan led San Antonio with 20 points while Trey Lyles turned in a double-double with 15 points and 10 rebounds. Dejounte Murray scored 14.

The Thunder now break for All-Star weekend and are set to return next Thursday against the Dallas Mavericks at Chesapeake Energy Arena.