Thunder Win Their First Playoff Game in Four Years
On Sunday night the New Orleans Pelicans took on the Oklahoma City Thunder in Paycom Center in the first game of the series between the two teams. While it was the best NBA game on television all day, the Thunder managed to secure a narrow 94-92 victory over New Orleans. Oklahoma City got off to a strong start behind the impressive performance of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. He led the team with 28 points, six rebounds, and four assists, showcasing his versatility on both ends of the floor. Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren also had standout games, contributing 19 points and seven rebounds and 15 points, 11 rebounds, and an impressive five blocks respectively. Their combined efforts provided the Thunder a much-needed offensive and defensive boost throughout the game.
On the other side, the Pelicans were led by Trey Murphy III, CJ McCollum, and Jonas Valanciunas who put up 21, 20, and 13 points respectively. Valanciunas was a monster on the glass grabbing 20 rebounds, nine of which were offensive rebounds. Despite the play of these three guys, the Pelicans' bad shooting in this one proved to be a problem as they shot 38.5% from the field and 28.2% from beyond the arc, leading them to fall short in the final minutes of this game. On a night where the Pelicans star Zion Williamson was out due to a left hamstring sprain New Orleans desperately needed their other offensive talent to step up. Unfortunately for them, their next best player Brandon Ingram had a rough shooting night going 5-17 and finishing with only 12 points.
Regardless of whether you are a Pelicans, Thunder, or just a basketball fan, this game one was very promising for NBA fans, on a day full of NBA playoff games that were blowouts, showing us all that the Pelicans and Thunder are two very evenly matched teams, meaning that we are all in for a great series. Oklahoma City’s efficient shooting and strong defensive presence proved to be the ultimate difference-maker in this one. As the series goes on, we will see if that is still the case. Without Williamson can McCollum and Ingram lead the Pelicans to a series win versus the Thunder or will Oklahoma City win their first NBA Playoff series since 2016?
