OKLAHOMA CITY – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 30 points and nine assists in three quarters as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Los Angeles Lakers 121-92 on Wednesday night.
Isaiah Joe added 21 points for the Thunder, which increased its league-best record to 12-1.
Oklahoma City took down one of its biggest rivals in the Western Conference in Game 2. They defeated the Golden State Warriors 126-102 on Tuesday evening.
Los Angeles guard Luka Doncic held himself to 19 points on 7-for-20 shooting. He was averaging 37.1 points entering the game.
Oklahoma City’s Lou Dort, the goalie who usually guards Doncic, had a strained upper right trapezius, and the Thunder got the job done anyway.
Austin Reeves, who averaged 30.3 points, scored 13 points on 4-for-12 shooting for the Lakers. Los Angeles has scored at least 116 points in every game this season, but has yet to come close to shooting 40.3% from the field.
The Lakers played without LeBron James again, although he practiced on Wednesday for the first time this season. He got in some reps with the team’s G League affiliate earlier in the day in California.
Los Angeles could have used another star against Oklahoma City. The Thunder led 30-18 at the end of the first quarter, then held the Lakers without a field goal for nearly eight minutes to start the second half. Los Angeles missed the first 11 shots of the quarter, as Oklahoma City increased its advantage to 70-38 at halftime.
In the final seconds of the third quarter, Gilgeous-Alexander drove toward the goal, then fired a behind-the-back pass to Joe, who scored a three-pointer as time expired in the period to give Oklahoma City a 100-64 lead.
Lakers: Visit the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday.
Thunder: Visit the Charlotte Hornets on Saturday.
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