Game three started how the entire city of San Antonio wanted, but finished in a way that would send them to bed with a bad feeling for the rest of the series. They dominated early but failed to continue down that path for an entire game. The Thunder showed why they are regarded as the heavy favorite to win the NBA Finals and repeat as champions. Let's talk about everything that happened in game three of the Western Conference Finals.
The Spurs could not have asked for a better start to game three. The Spurs won the opening tip and got right to work. Fox makes a running bucket, Wembanyama drills a three, two free throws made by Castle, then a three by Devin Vassell all in the opening two minutes. The top about came off of the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio as the Spurs opened the game on a 10-0 run. With 10:10 remaining in the first quarter the Thunder burned their first time out attempting to freeze the Spurs. It was a worthy effort that didn't pay off. Coming out of the timeout the Spurs defense continued to hold tough. Castle and Wembanyama blocked a shot each and Spurs scored five more points all before the Thunder made a basket. Hartenstein ended the suffering by knocking down a mid range jump shot. Both teams exchanged baskets for the next minute making the score 19-4 before Wembanyama would head to the bench for a breather.
When Wembanyama is on the court his presence is felt. When he is not on the floor it is even more noticeable. The space he takes up on the defensive side of the floor can not even be matched by anyone else on the roster. With Wembanyama on the bench the Thunder went on a 15-5 run to cut the lead to five, trailing now 24-19. With just under four minutes left in the first Quarter Wembanyama would make his way back out to the court. He made an immediate impact assisting on the next basket, blocking a shot, knocking down a free throw followed by a deep three to grow the lead back up to seven. Then, the first controversial call was made in the game. Under the basket when going for a rebound Wembanyama grabbed Williams arm and impeded on his ability to move for a rebound. The call itself was absolutely correct, but what makes it controversial is the fact that Oklahoma City got away with that same foul a majority of game two. Nonetheless, the precedent for game three was now set. The first quarter came to a close with the Spurs leading the Thunder by a score of 31-26.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was held scoreless in the first quarter, just the second time he has failed to score in the first quarter over the last four seasons. He quickly found his first made basket in the form of a three pointer. Chet knocks down a three, Shai follows and then Williams caps off the 9-0 to run to start the second quarter and take their first lead. The Spurs ignited their crowd ending the scoreless drought when Carter Bryant knocked down a corner three. The next five minutes the Spurs and Thunder traded baskets leaving the score knotted at 45-45.
The tide in the game turned in the Thunder's favors after Keldon Johnson fouled Alex Caruso who then knocked down both free throws. Immediately following the made free throws by Caruso, Keldon Johnson would turn the ball over being charged with an offensive foul when he threw a flailing elbow that landed. The Thunder capitalized on the turnover with a quick three by Isaiah Joe and a runner made by Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The lead was now seven points, 52-45, the largest the Thunder had held at any point in the game thus far. Castle ended the Thunder run when he knocked down two free throws of his own. The final three minutes of the first half ended with the Thunder outscoring the Spurs 6-4 and taking a halftime lead of 58-51.
The seven point lead the Thunder built heading into the half would only grow the rest of the game. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander did what most people hate him for as he found his way to the free throw line and went a perfect seven for seven from the charity stripe in the third quarter. He would score twelve points in the third quarter. The bench for the Thunder is what made the difference in the game as it progressed. The Thunder bench had four players that found double figures scoring, three of the four scoring fifteen or more points. The biggest contributor off the bench in the first half was Jaylin Williams making four of five threes, adding four buckets and two free throws. He would score fourteen in the first half. The biggest second half contributor for the Thunder was Jared McCain. He scored sixteen points in the second half, adding to his first half scoring total of eight he would score twenty-four off the bench for the Thunder. Twenty-four points is the most McCain has scored in a post season game thus far in his young career.
The strong performance from the Thunder bench contributed to them slowly building their lead over the course of the third and fourth quarter. The Thunder would win the third quarter by a score of 37-33 and grow their lead to eleven heading to the fourth quarter. Oklahoma City continued to keep pace with the Spurs scoring and took advantage of turnovers and missed shots by the Spurs to build an even bigger lead. The lead in the fourth quarter got as big as eighteen points before settling down to fifteen. Fifteen would be the margin of victory as the Thunder won game three by a score of 123-108.
The series now stands with the Thunder leading 2-1. Game four will be Sunday night in San Antonio. A game the Spurs will need to win to avoid going down 3-1 heading back to Oklahoma City.
As always Who Dey & Go Redleds!
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