Thunder tie – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the San Antonio Spurs 122-113 in Game 2 of the Western Conference finals on Wednesday night, knotting the series at one win apiece and setting up Game 3 Friday in San Antonio.
OKLAHOMA CITY — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander didn’t just bounce back after a rougher Game 1. He looked like the MVP again, pushing through early pressure and carrying the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 122-113 win over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night in Game 2.
The Thunder needed that kind of response to keep their footing. Instead of letting the Western Conference finals swing toward San Antonio after a subpar opening game, Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 30 points. Alex Caruso added 17 off the bench, and Chet Holmgren scored 13 for Oklahoma City. Reserves Jared McCain and Cason Wallace each had 12.
On the Spurs side, Stephon Castle scored 25 points. Devin Vassell finished with 22, and Victor Wembanyama posted a dominant all-around line with 21 points, 17 rebounds, six assists and four blocks.
By the numbers, Oklahoma City did much of the damage where the game tightened: the Thunder held a 57-25 edge in bench scoring and a 27-10 advantage in points off turnovers.
Still, the win came with a dose of uncertainty for the Thunder. Jalen Williams. a guard who had already missed six games in these playoffs with a left hamstring strain. left in the first half with a recurrence of the hamstring issue. The team said it was tightness. but it’s the kind of development that can change everything about who’s available for the next game.
“It’s tightness,” the Thunder indicated, but even that would figure to put his availability for Friday into doubt.
San Antonio’s own health concerns didn’t help the rhythm of the night. The Spurs were already missing All-Star guard De’Aaron Fox because of ankle soreness. Then they lost their starting replacement, Dylan Harper, to a right leg injury after awkward falls in the third quarter.
The second half carried a familiar sense of momentum swings. San Antonio trailed by 11 at the half and by eight entering the fourth quarter, then narrowed it to 99-97 on a corner 3-pointer by Harrison Barnes with 9:06 left.
For the next 2 1/2 minutes, Oklahoma City held the line. Defending champion energy showed up in an 11-0 run that included a banked-in 3-pointer by Jared McCain midway through the burst. That spurt stretched the Thunder’s lead to 13.
But the Spurs kept fighting. Wembanyama scored down low to make it 118-113 with 1:25 remaining. Gilgeous-Alexander answered one last time, scoring again to settle the game and send the series back to San Antonio tied.
After the win, Gilgeous-Alexander pointed to the urgency in the moments that followed Game 1.
“The guys brought it tonight. Knowing what it would have meant if we lost this one, we brought the energy from the jump,” he said.
Isaiah Hartenstein, who barely played in Game 1, stepped in for Oklahoma City with 10 points and 13 rebounds. The Thunder also improved to 14-5 after a loss this season.
It was only the second time in seven meetings that Oklahoma City beat the Spurs. And with Game 3 coming Friday in San Antonio, the matchup now carries a sharper edge—because while the series is tied, injuries on both sides have left the next 48 hours feeling unusually critical.
Oklahoma City Thunder San Antonio Spurs Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Victor Wembanyama Jalen Williams injury De'Aaron Fox injury Game 2 Western Conference finals Game 3 Friday
30 points and they still look uncertain? sounds like a trap game waiting.
How does one guy score 30 and then they’re like “might not have the next guy”?? playoff injuries are wild. Spurs bench must’ve been trash or OKC lucked out.
Jalen Williams going out again already… that’s basically the whole team right there. If he’s out for Game 3 then it’s gonna be Spurs in 4 or something. Also Wemby having 4 blocks like yeah of course.
Idk why they keep talking about “bench scoring” like that matters more than the actual stars. 57-25 bench is crazy but also only won by 9? feels like Spurs shoulda won if Wemby had all those rebounds and blocks. Hamstring tightness is never just “tightness,” it’s always the injury coming back, watch.