The Thunder hosted the 76ers on Friday night in what seemed like a matchup in which they would be outmatched. However, Oklahoma City held their own.
After falling to a quick double-digit lead, all signs pointed to a blowout loss for this young Thunder squad. By the end of the first quarter, OKC had stormed back to cut the deficit to only five.
Fergski 💦 #ThunderUp pic.twitter.com/3haA9AYyia
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 16, 2019
The Thunder carried their momentum into the second quarter led by a surprising offensive scorer. Terrance Ferguson was lighting up the scoreboard seemingly knocking down every shot he took. This boosted the Thunder to a 54-49 lead at halftime after out-scoring Philadelphia by 10 points in the quarter.
The 76ers started to find their rhythm again in the second half. The experience of Philadelphia started to show the more and more this game went on. After three quarters, it seemed as if once again the 76ers were about to run away with it.
Although they faced a manageable deficit heading to the final quarter, I still had no confidence in this team pulling through with a victory. That being said, the Thunder rallied down the stretch and took a three point lead in the final minutes. Shortly after, Joel Imbiid knocked down a clutch three to tie the game with only seconds remaining and this one went to overtime.
No surprise here, but the Thunder started overtime with another three from Terrance Ferguson. This shot seemingly gave OKC all the momentum, and the Thunder went on an early run to hold a 121-111 lead. However, things weren’t over just yet as Philadelphia responded with back-to-back makes from beyond the arc. The Thunder did not panic, slowed it down, and knocked down their free throw shots to pull off the 127-119 win.
🚨 Terrance Ferguson Alert 🚨
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 16, 2019
💦💦💦 to take the lead in OT. pic.twitter.com/9QIw5GTtBr
Thunder Player Of The Game
Terrance Ferguson has had a rather tough season thus far, but he put together an impressive performance on Friday night. On top of a solid defensive game, Ferguson produced 16 points on 6-8 shooting. He was also 4-6 from beyond the arc. T-Ferg is on the floor for defensive purposes, but when he can produce offense like this, it’s huge for the Thunder.
🚨 Close game alert 🚨
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) November 16, 2019
T-Ferg still hot.
👀 on @FOXSportsOK pic.twitter.com/kPUTNqg7B7
Heading West
The Thunder will be heading to the west coast to take on the LA Clippers on Monday night. The game will tip-off at 9:30 PM CST. It will be televised on FSOK and broadcast on the radio at WWLS 98.1 FM.
Paul George is back on the court which means this will be the first opportunity for the Thunder to face the all-star small forward since he left the franchise during the summer. It will also be Shai-Gilgeous Alexander and Danilo Gallinari’s first opportunity to square off against their former team.
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