Jalen Williams scored 28 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 26 to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 133-106 victory over the Utah Jazz on Tuesday in an NBA Cup game.
With this win, the Thunder finished 3-1 in the West B Group stage, keeping their chances of advancing to the knockout rounds alive. Oklahoma City has now won five out of its last six games.
The Jazz, on the other hand, lost their fifth straight game and ended the event without a win.
Despite shooting a season-high 54.3% from the field, Utah was unable to win because they attempted 32 fewer shots than the Thunder.
Oklahoma City’s strong defensive play forced Utah into 29 turnovers, tying their franchise high since the team moved to Oklahoma City. The Thunder capitalized on these turnovers, scoring 45 points off them and matching a season high with 18 steals.
The Thunder’s defense has been strong all season, and Utah, which turns the ball over the most in the NBA, struggled with that weakness again in this game.
Utah started the game hot, making 7 of their first 11 shots and building a nine-point lead midway through the first quarter. But even then, Oklahoma City was forcing turnovers. The Thunder finished the first quarter on a 22-6 run, taking a 32-25 lead.
Aaron Wiggins had a steal and three straight offensive rebounds to help the Thunder finish the quarter strong, and Gilgeous-Alexander capped it with a layup.
The Thunder continued to control the game, pushing the lead to 28-6 early in the second quarter. Utah never got closer than six points after that. By halftime, Oklahoma City was ahead by 12, having forced 19 turnovers.
In the third quarter, the Thunder opened the game wide with 16 of 20 shooting and scored 11 of their 40 points from Utah turnovers. The lead grew as large as 33 points.
Cason Wallace was the only Oklahoma City starter to play in the fourth quarter, as the Thunder led by 27 points heading into the final frame.
Walker Kessler and Collin Sexton led the Jazz with 17 points each. Kessler also grabbed 11 rebounds.
