In what was considered by many to be a must-win for Oklahoma City, a defensive effort late in the game led the way as the Thunder knocked off the Rockets 108-102 in Houston on Saturday night.
Huge W pic.twitter.com/QjAajDxNQx
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 8, 2018
The Thunder was able to play a close game with the Rockets in the first quarter despite playing from behind for the first seven minutes. The offense was rolling for both teams, but defense was scarce. With a little over five minutes left in the period, Oklahoma City took a 20-19 lead, and they would hold on for the remainder of the quarter.
Carmelo Anthony led the way for the Thunder with 14 points and four rebounds, Paul George would add in eight points, Steven Adams put in seven points, and Russell Westbrook did a little bit of everything with four points, four assists, and four rebounds as Oklahoma City led Houston 36-30 after the first period.
“Classic Melo” 14-point Q1.
6/7 shooting #OKCvsHOU pic.twitter.com/90oo8DIbYN— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 8, 2018
The Rockets went to work quickly in the second quarter by scoring seven straight points to retake the lead at 37-36. Immediately following that, George hit a three, and Westbrook checked back into the game. A bucket from Jerami Grant, a layup from Westbrook, and then a three-pointer from Grant capped a 10-0 Thunder run to give Oklahoma City a 46-37 lead.
Thunder runs up 10 straight. pic.twitter.com/kZiypZWUBz
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 8, 2018
Houston would get right back into it and cut into Oklahoma City’s lead before tying it up at 60-60 with under a minute left in the first half. After some free throws from both teams in the final minutes of the second quarter, the Rockets held the halftime lead at 62-61.
Primetime battle pic.twitter.com/0OUjJ0UzJa
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 8, 2018
The third quarter has been the Thunder’s kryptonite all season, and there were several times tonight where it looked like the Rockets might just blow the game wide open. Oklahoma City was able to keep it close, however, and despite Houston leading for the entire period, the Thunder was able to tie it up three different times, and the Rockets never led by more than six.
As a team, Oklahoma City shot an abysmal 6/22 (27.3%) for the quarter, but defensively, the Thunder was able to hold the Rockets to just 21 points. Despite the lack of offense from the Thunder, Houston held a mere 83-80 lead with one quarter left to play.
Grab it. Kiwi hustle @ work pic.twitter.com/gWZxLYiLEw
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) April 8, 2018
As bad as the third quarter was for the Thunder at times, Oklahoma City started off the fourth on fire. A lineup consisting of Paul George plus bench players jumped on the Rockets to go on a 9-2 run to take an 89-85 lead with 9:15 left in the game. Houston would retake the lead with 7:09 remaining, but Russell Westbrook hit a three on the next possession, and it was no looking back for Oklahoma City. The Thunder extended their lead to double digits with 1:02 to go, and the Rockets were able to trim it to five with 36.4 seconds left, but Oklahoma City was able to hold on for the win.
HUGE win for OKC, snapping the Rockets' 20-game home winning streak. pic.twitter.com/4mKQC94E86
— ESPN (@espn) April 8, 2018
3 Quick Thoughts
- Free Throw Shooting Was Key: In the first two meetings this season between the Thunder and the Rockets, Houston held a heavy advantage in free throw shooting. The Rockets combined to go 54/65 (83.1%) from the free throw line, while the Thunder only shot 26/34 (76.5%). Tonight, the roles changed as Oklahoma City managed to go 26/33 (78.8%), while Houston shot 16/23 (69.6%). Headed into the fourth quarter, the Rockets had seven more attempts from the charity stripe than the Thunder, but Oklahoma City was able to get to the line 17 times in the final frame, while Houston did not make it to the line even once. The Thunder has steadily improved free throw shooting over the last few games, which will be an absolute necessity in the postseason if they want to have any success.
- Defense Finishes the Game: The Houston Rockets have one of the most prolific offenses in NBA, and after scoring 62 points in the first half, it looked like they were going to be well into triple digits by the end of the game. Coming out of the locker room at halftime, the Thunder had a different plan in mind. Oklahoma City was able to hold Houston to just 15/36 (41.7%) shooting from the field in the second half, including 5/16 (31.3%) from three. When Russell Westbrook checked into the game in the fourth quarter with a little under nine minutes to play, he took it upon himself to guard James Harden. During that time, Harden did not score, and Westbrook was able to make play after play on the defensive side of the ball that led to points on the offensive end. Westbrook is known as a lazy defender, playing hard when he wants to, while slacking off at other times. If he can play the rest of the season and into the postseason at the level that he did in the fourth quarter tonight, the Thunder will be able to matchup with just about anybody.
- Playoff Picture: With two games left in the regular season, Oklahoma City has yet to clinch a playoff berth, but tonight’s win puts them in a really good spot. Essentially all the Thunder has to do is pick up a win either against the Heat in Miami on Monday or against the Memphis Grizzlies in Oklahoma City on Wednesday. As far as seeding goes, it gets a little more complicated than that. The Thunder could essentially still grab the four-seed, but if they lose out, they could miss the playoffs altogether. The only thing Oklahoma City needs to worry about, though, is winning. As long as the Thunder can take care of their business, they’re in the playoffs, and then they can worry about who they have to face off against.
Moving On to Miami
The Oklahoma City Thunder is headed to Miami where they will take on the Heat on Monday night. The Heat currently sits at sixth in the East, but their spot is not solidified, so they very much need to win almost as much as the Thunder does. Oklahoma City has yet to clinch a playoff berth, but a win in Miamiwould most certainly do it. The Thunder is 1-0 against the Heat so far this season, defeating Miami in Oklahoma City just a couple of weeks ago. Tip-off is set for 6:30 PM CT and will be televised on FSOK. The game will also be broadcast on the radio on WWLS 98.1 FM.
Be sure to check out this week’s episode of Thunder Things with the Thunder Guys.
Article written by Zack Low. Follow @TheThunderGuys on Twitter & Instagram, and like us on Facebook.