The Oklahoma City Thunder opened their Western Conference playoff series with a stunning 131-80 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Sunday afternoon at Paycom Center. This victory is a thrilling omen for the Thunder as they hope for a mostly invulnerable playoff run. The way that included establishing their dominance over Memphis, sweeping the Grizzlies 4-0 and winning each of those matchups by double digits.
It was the Thunder’s first-ranked defense that proved to be the difference in this lopsided Game 1. Further, they choked the life out of the Grizzlies’ attack, inducing a season-high 24 turnovers, 14 of which came in a jaw-dropping first half. The Thunder punished you for every mistake that you made. This audacious gambit had them soaring to an insurmountable lead that ballooned to as many as 56 points during the match.
What a victory this is, both in showcasing the Thunder’s talents as well as in making history. They finished the regular season with a remarkable 68-14 record. That incredible run set the NBA record for point differential, ending at a mind-boggling plus-12.9 points per game. Their average winning margin against Memphis throughout the regular season was 18.75 points, indicating their consistent superiority over the Grizzlies.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander seems to be the runaway favorite for the MVP. He had an off evening, hitting just 15 points on a 4-of-13 shooting clip. He finished with only three more points than his regular season low total. During that 2019-20 season, he dazzled the world on his way to an astounding 32.7 points per game average, which secured his first scoring title.
The 131-80 score marks the most lopsided playoff game in the NBA since 2015 when the Chicago Bulls defeated the Milwaukee Bucks by 54 points in a first-round matchup. In fact, it’s now the fifth biggest margin of victory in playoff history, ESPN Research adds. In total, the Thunder’s success reflects similarly historic achievements. Coincidentally, they have tied the biggest playoff margin of victory, first set by the Minneapolis Lakers in 1956 and then later duplicated by the Denver Nuggets in 2009.
In the wake of what would prove to be a crushing defeat, Grizzlies superstar Ja Morant took responsibility on his squad’s inability.
“We will never play that bad again.” – Ja Morant
As teammate Desmond Bane stated, it’s all about going from the past to the present as fast as you can.
“You got to turn the page fast.” – Desmond Bane
Bane spoke about what they learned from falling to this opponent. He noted that, even with the lopsided score, they remain in a position to rebound.
“Definitely take the rest of this afternoon and kind of see what we could have done better, but at the end of the day, it’s one game. If we lose by 50 or lose on a buzzer-beater, the series is still 1-0.” – Desmond Bane
For the Thunder, Gilgeous-Alexander was unequivocal about his team’s talent and potential, even as he had an off-night in this contest.
“I have a great group of guys around me. I know that, and I’ve known that for a long time. Tonight is no surprise. They obviously played amazing. A bunch of me’s out there tonight might not have won this. That’s what you have a team for.” – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Aside from losing Game 1, head coach Tuomas Iisalo understood the difficult task at hand but was still hopeful for upcoming games.
“Luckily for us, there’s only one way from this, and that’s up. We will analyze it, we’ll learn from it, and then we will fix those things that hurt us. But there were a lot of things.” – Tuomas Iisalo
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