The top two in the Western Conference, the Oklahoma City Thunder and the Houston Rockets, met again for the last time on Saturday to cap off the 2024-2025 NBA season. However, the young Rockets squad emerged victorious against the best team in the NBA, offensively and defensively, and most importantly, against the MVP frontrunner, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
Rockets’ Defense Limited the Thunder and SGA’s Production
Sophomore Amen Thompson took the responsibility of guarding one of the most elite scores in the association, and he definitely did a great job. That includes a defensive highlight where Thompson blocked SGA’s jumpshot in the fourth quarter.
The other half of the Thompson twins managed to contain SGA to 22 points and 8 assists. This is the sixth time the 26-year-old superstar was held to less than 25 points this season. However, the past instances saw the OKC still take the victory despite a quiet night from Shai. This time around, his being limited in scoring took a toll on the whole team’s offense, resulting in a brutal loss, 125-111.
Youngsters Jalen Green and Alperen Sengun picked up the offensive load. The two rising stars combined for 65 points, behind Green’s 34 and Sengun’s 31. This win pushes them further to be a lock at the second seed in the West, with a 51-27 record.
Jalen Williams also got up for 33, Chet Holmgren finished with 20 points, while Isiah Hartenstein had 16 and 7 for Oklahoma, but the Thunder could have used more production from their reserves considering SGA can’t get past the Rockets’ tight defense.
Oklahoma Chasing 70 Regular Season Wins Officially Out the Window
Before setting foot inside the Toyota Center on Saturday, the OKC Thunder (64-12) was just coming off from a solid 11-game win streak. They have also won 18 of their last 19 games and looked like they could continue their momentum and maybe reach 70 wins in the regular season.
Had they kept winning for the next eight games, the Shai-led Thunder would become the third team to reach the 70-win plethora, joining the 2015-2016 Warriors and the 1995-1996 Chicago Bulls.
Unfortunately for them, the hot and eager Rockets were in the way. They’re now at 64-13, but are still the top seed in the West. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who’s gunning for this year’s Most Valuable Player award, is also looking to bring the Larry O’Brien trophy to Oklahoma for the first time in franchise history.
That being said, can you see any other Western team beating the Thunder in a 7-game series?
