Wembanyama has 41 points, 24 rebounds and Spurs top Thunder 122-115 in 2OT to open West finals

Alex Caruso scored 31 points, the second-highest scoring game of his career, off the bench for the Thunder — whose nine-game playoff winning streak dating to Game 7 of last season’s Finals was snapped.

Jalen Williams returned from a six-game absence caused by a hamstring strain and scored 26 points for the Thunder, while Shai Gilgeous-Alexander — on the night he got his second straight Most Valuable Player trophy — had 24 points and 12 assists but shot 7 for 23.

It was the sixth Game 1 in NBA playoff history to go into double overtime — the first since a Spurs-Warriors game in 2013.

And as the clock ticked toward midnight, Wembanyama decided enough was enough.

Game 2 is Wednesday at Oklahoma City.

“It was a war of wills,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “The levels of mental toughness exuded by both teams … we needed every second from everybody that played.”

The Spurs were up by 10 with 9:10 left in regulation, wasted it all, then survived a frantic final stretch where the lead changed hands twice and the game was tied three times in a span of less than two minutes.

Wembanyama had an off-balance chance to win it on the last play of regulation, but Chet Holmgren swatted it away. In overtime, Wembanyama more than atoned — connecting on a tying 3-pointer from well behind the arc with 28 seconds left to tie the game and send it to a second OT.

“We have to get better from this game,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

Gilgeous-Alexander had his worst first half, shooting-wise, in nearly three years — 1 for 5 from the field, four points. It was the first time since Oct. 29, 2023, a span of 270 appearances including playoffs, that he didn’t have at least two field goals before halftime.

Meanwhile, Wembanyama was doing whatever he wanted — dunking over trios of defenders, flexing at times, finishing the half with 14 points and 10 rebounds, looking perfectly comfortable in his debut on this stage.

And the Spurs’ lead was only seven at the break, 51-44.

Gilgeous-Alexander got a couple shots to fall in the third, and the Thunder even briefly reclaimed the lead. But the Spurs were unfazed and the margin was still seven. San Antonio was ahead 80-73 going into the fourth.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/nba

Tim Reynolds, The Associated Press

by The Canadian Press

Wembanyama has 41 points, 24 rebounds and Spurs top Thunder 122-115 in 2OT to open West finals

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