SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 32 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder opened their season with a 116-104 victory over the San Antonio Spurs, the team that ended their dreams of a title defense last season.
San Antonio star Victor Wembanyama had 12 points but was 1 for 13 from the field. It was his fewest field goals since going 2 for 5 against Minnesota on May 10. Wembanyama’s lone field goal came on an alley-oop pass from De’Aaron Fox as time expired in the third quarter. Wembanyama missed his first 12 shots, including having an alley-oop attempt blocked by 7-foot-3 rookie Aday Mara.
Jared McCain added 20 points on 6-for-8 shooting on 3-pointers as Oklahoma City led for all but the opening five minutes of the game.
The Spurs beat the Thunder 111-103 in Oklahoma City in Game 7 of the Western Conference Finals on May 30 in their previous matchup.
The contest was a rematch of last season's Western Conference finals and the latest chapter in arguably the league's premier burgeoning rivalry.
Nearly five months apart did not cool this heated rivalry.
Three minutes into the second quarter Fox received a Flagrant Foul 1 for tossing Chet Holmgren to the court after they became entangled in the paint. The body slam led to a huge scrum with Wembanyama and Jaylin Williams having to be separated after pushing each other. Wembanyama, Williams, Jalen Williams and Kenrich Williams each received a technical for the dust up.
Oklahoma City went on a 9-0 run after the scuffle with Jalen and Kenrich Williams accounting for five points. Harrison Barnes’ 3-pointer ended the run, but the Thunder responded by scoring 13 straight capped by Cason Wallace’s 3-pointer for a 59-33 lead.
Oklahoma City outscored San Antonio 31-16 in the second quarter in taking a 65-44 lead at the half.
The Spurs opened the second half on a 23-9 run to pull within single digits after trailing by 26 in the first half.
Gilgeous-Alexander and McCain stepped up when San Antonio pulled close, combining for 25 points in the second half.
Up next
Thunder: Host Denver on Thursday night.
Spurs: Host Houston in Austin on Friday night.
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