The Oklahoma City Thunder have ended the red-hot Utah Jazz’s six-game winning streak in one of Josh Giddey’s best games of the season.
The Aussie racked up a 20-point, 10-rebound double-double, Jalen Williams dropped 27 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 31 as the visitors downed the Jazz 134-129 in Friday’s contest (all times AEDT) to improve to 27-13 overall.
Giddey’s full line included 20 points on 8-of-16 shooting from the field and 3-of-3 from the free throw line, with one three-pointer, 10 rebounds, six assists and one steal as a +10 plus/minus.
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Giddey hits milestone with 1000 assists! | 01:00
The former Pick 6 also recored his 1000th career assist, and the milestones didn’t stop there.
According to Bally Sports’ Chris Josephson, Giddey is now the only player from the 2021 draft class with 2000 points, 1000 rebounds and 1000 assists, while he also became the fastest player in OKC history to reach those milestones (170 games).
It marked Giddey’s second-highest scoring performance of the season, with his 23-point showing against Boston earlier this month his only better return.
The 21-year old’s big outing came after it was confirmed he wouldn’t face charges following a police investigation into his alleged relationship with an underage girl, though the NBA is still probing the matter.
For Utah, Colin Sexton posted an equal game-high 31 points with seven assists and Lauri Markkanen had 26 points and 10 boards as the Jazz, whose rise saw them charge into play-in qualification, fell to 22-21.
The Thunder were up big early in this one – they led by 19 in the first quarter before Utah gradually chipped away at the scoreboard from then on.
It led to a tense fourth quarter, where Jalen Williams stepped up with multiple big shots, but Utah never went away. Whenever OKC looked like breaking away in the fourth quarter – leading by double digits inside the last four minutes – the Jazz kept fighting back.
Colin Sexton’s emphatic jam responded to a long-range Gilgeous-Alexander jumper with a minute remaining to make it a four-point game, only for Thunder rookie Cason Wallace come right back with a clutch three-pointer.
In Utah’s desperate last attempt to bring it back to a one-possesion game with 20 seconds left, Chet Holmgren swatted Walker Kessler’s attempt at the rim – Holmgren’s fourth block of the game – to seal a big Thunder win.
With it, OKC snapped a snap a two-game losing streak against both Los Angeles teams on the road.
‘RIDICULOUS’ EDWARDS WOWS WITH ONE OF THE PLAYS OF THE SEASON
Anthony Edwards can do things on a court like no other.
The Minnesota Timberwolves star produced one of the plays of the season in his team’s 118-103 win over the depleted Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.
Edwards late in the third quarter put an array of dribble moves on Xavier Tillman deep inside the arc to get the Grizzlies big man off balance before lobbing the ball to himself off the back board and throwing down a huge slam.
The Wolves bench and home fans alike erupted thereafter following the epic play, which got the basketball world talking on social media.
Edwards led his team with 28 points and Mike Conley added 17 points and 10 assists as Minnesota consolidated the first seed in the West by improving to 30-11.
Jaren Jackson Jr led all scorers with 36, but Memphis, missing Ja Morant, Desmond Bane, Marcus Smart, Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke, dropped its third game from its last four to slide to 15-26 overall.
ELSEWHERE …
New York guard Jalen Brunson scored 20 of his 41 points in the fourth quarter to propel the Knicks to a narrow 113-109 NBA victory over the Washington Wizards at Madison Square Garden.
After Jordan Poole’s layup pulled the Wizards within one midway through the fourth quarter, Brunson erupted, scoring the Knicks’ next nine points as New York kept the Wizards at bay.
Brunson, who scored 30 points in his return from a two-game injury absence on Thursday, added eight rebounds and eight assists.
Julius Randle added 21 points for New York and Donte DiVincenzo and OG Anunoby scored 19 apiece to help the Knicks overcome 17 turnovers.
Giannis absence sees Bucks fall to Cavs | 00:40
Elsewhere the Chicago Bulls, with 24 points from both Nikola Vucevic and DeMar DeRozan, dominated early and held on late to beat the Raptors 116-110 in Toronto.
Vucevic added 14 rebounds and handed out seven assists, and Colby White chipped in 23 points for the Bulls, who out-scored the Raptors 74-50.
The Bulls attacked aggressively to lead by as many as 14 in the first quarter. They repelled a Raptors run in the second quarter and were up by 13 in the third before Toronto battled back again in a fourth quarter that featured 10 lead changes.
Scottie Barnes led Toronto with 31 points, his finger roll layup with 2:21 remaining putting the Raptors up 109-108 only for White to answer with a jump shot that put the Bulls up for good.
“We knew they’re a team that never gives up, it’s not going to be a pretty game with them,” Vucevic said. “They play very physical and they play a lot of different ways defensively as well. So we just knew we had to stick with it.
“And guys made huge plays at the end, so just a great team effort,” Vucevic said.
ALL RESULTS
BULLS 116 RAPTORS 110
WIZARDS 109 KNICKS 113
THUNDER 134 JAZZ 129
PACERS 126 KINGS 121
GRIZZLIES 103 TIMBERWOLVES 118
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