Thunder Take 2-1 Lead in West Finals with 123-108 Road Win Over Spurs

The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the San Antonio Spurs 123-108 on Friday night at Frost Bank Center, taking a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference finals with their first road win of the series.

The clearest reason for the swing was Oklahoma City’s depth. The Thunder’s bench overwhelmed San Antonio’s reserves 76-23, helping erase the Spurs’ fast 15-0 opening run and turning the game in Oklahoma City’s favor by the second half. In a matchup between the top two seeds in the West, the No. 1-seeded Thunder got the kind of support that changed the game once the starters settled it down.

NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led Oklahoma City with 26 points and 12 assists in 36 minutes, steering the offense as the Thunder recovered from the early deficit. Reserve Jared McCain gave Oklahoma City a major lift with 24 points off the bench, shooting 10 of 21 from the field and adding four rebounds in 26 minutes. For San Antonio, Victor Wembanyama, the league’s Defensive Player of the Year, scored 26 points with four rebounds and three assists but did not get enough help as the Spurs dropped their first home game of the series.

Oklahoma City also separated itself with more efficient shooting, especially from long range. The Thunder shot 39 of 81 from the field, good for 48.1%, and made 17 of 38 from 3-point range, a 44.7% clip. They also converted 28 of 33 free throws. San Antonio finished 34 of 80 overall, or 42.5%, and went 13 of 41 from beyond the arc, shooting 31.7%. The Spurs were solid at the line at 27 of 33, but they could not match Oklahoma City’s perimeter shooting once the game settled after the opening burst.

The series had been tied 1-1 entering Game 3 after San Antonio’s 122-115 double-overtime win in Oklahoma City on May 18 and the Thunder’s 122-113 response in Game 2 on May 20. Now the defending NBA champion and top-seeded Thunder have a 2-1 edge, with Game 4 set for Sunday at 8 p.m. ET in San Antonio.