Oklahoma City delivered the perfect response to a humiliating blowout, gritty, composed, and clutch, as the young Thunder held off Minnesota 128-126 in Game 4 to move one win away from the NBA Finals.
Just 48 hours after a 42-point defeat, the Thunder’s bounce-back was nothing short of championship calibre. Led by the ever-poised Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who poured in 40 points, 10 rebounds, and nine assists, OKC silenced the Target Center with a performance built on resilience and poise.
“I tried to just lose myself in the competition,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Be aggressive, pick my spots.” He was everything the Thunder needed and then some, coolly sinking two free throws with 6.1 seconds left to seal it.
Jalen Williams was electric, draining six threes on his way to 34 points, while rookie Chet Holmgren added 21 points, seven boards and three blocks in front of his hometown crowd. The Thunder’s offense hummed early, shooting 11-of-17 to open the game, while 11 offensive rebounds in the first half set the tone.
Minnesota never led after the first quarter, yet never went away either. Nickeil Alexander-Walker (23 points) and Donte DiVincenzo (21 points) sparked the Wolves’ bench to 64 points, but the Thunder responded each time with answers from their young core.
Anthony Edwards was held to just 16 points, and Julius Randle struggled, going 1-of-7. “They outplayed us, got more of the 50-50 balls,” Edwards admitted. “Wanted it a little bit more.”
OKC’s defense, led by Luguentz Dort, forced 23 turnovers and stifled any late comeback hopes. Even a last-ditch inbound with 0.3 seconds left was snuffed out by Williams, who calmly secured the ball to end it.
The Thunder now return to Oklahoma City with a 3-1 series lead and a shot to punch their Finals ticket on home court.
