Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 116-97 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday in Oklahoma City.
The Thunder have won six of the last eight games while the Grizzlies have lost five consecutive games.
The game was the last of a 25-game suspension for Memphis’ Ja Morant. The two-time All-Star is scheduled to make his season debut in Tuesday’s game at New Orleans.
Oklahoma City led by 15 at halftime and blew the game open in the third quarter, scoring 10 points off seven Grizzlies’ turnovers and holding Memphis to just 2 of 19 (10.5 percent) from the floor. The Grizzlies missed all seven of their shots inside the arc in the third as the Thunder outscored them 26-13 in the frame.
Memphis’ Bismack Biyombo missed the game due to back soreness while Derrick Rose was out with a left hamstring strain.
With Biyombo out, Xavier Tillman made his first start since early November. Tillman finished 0 for 8 from the floor.
Ziaire Williams scored a season-high 19 points off the bench to lead Memphis.
The Grizzlies shot just 35.3 percent from the floor, their second-worst shooting performance of the season.
Thunder rookie Chet Holmgren, who was coming off a career-high eight blocks in Saturday’s win at Denver, picked up where he left off.
Holmgren, who came in tied for third in the league in blocked shots per game at 2.7, had seven blocks in the win.
He also finished with 17 points and six rebounds.
Josh Giddey added 16 points and 12 rebounds in the win.
Gilgeous-Alexander was 13-of-14 from the free-throw line.
Memphis led for much of the early part of the first quarter before the Thunder went on an 8-1 run to end the quarter.
The Grizzlies tied it early in the second before a 14-4 run over about three minutes put the Thunder up by double figures and gave Oklahoma a lead it did not relinquish.
–Field Level Media
