OKC Thunder Survive Ugly Offensive Game, Defeat Denver Nuggets in Game 4

For the second time in their Western Conference semifinal battle against the Denver Nuggets, the Oklahoma City Thunder were in dire need of a bounce-back win. It wasn't pretty by any means, but Oklahoma City pulled out a 92-87 victory on the road.

This one would go down to the very end of the fourth quarter, with both teams' MVP candidates doing what they could to lead their teams to victory. Neither star player had an elite performance, but both did enough to keep their teams in contention for a win.

Unlike the start in the first quarter of their Game 2 win against the Nuggets, OKC did not come out swinging. Neither did Denver, but the slow offensive starts for both squads were a result of high-intensity defense. Neither team made a three-point shot until guard Lu Dort broke that streak. The two went a combined 1-for-25 from the perimeter to start, setting the tone for a rough offensive night. 

It only got worse, with OKC going 6-for-22 from the field in the first quarter and Denver going 2-for-22. The Thunder still led 17-8 at the end, but a change in offensive efficiency was needed both ways. 

While shots weren’t falling for either team, both did the smart thing: find ways to get to the free-throw line. OKC guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander took advantage of that early on, but it took the Nuggets a little longer to do so. Once they did, Denver finally started putting points on the board.

The Nuggets switched over to a zone defense in the middle of the second quarter that quickly made an impact on the Thunder's offense. It forced the Thunder to take perimeter shots and clamped down on the interior if they made it past the first line of defense.

If it weren’t for Gilgeous-Alexander, the 42-36 lead OKC held at the end of the first half would have looked much worse. He opened the game with 15 points and finished with 23 on 8-for-19 shooting. 

For the first time in the game, early in the third quarter, the Denver Nuggets took the lead. Forward Aaron Gordon found himself wide open after a drive-and-kick from Jamal Murray for the open triple. 

The double-team looks Denver was sending at Gilgeous-Alexander was creating issues for the Thunder because those around him were still struggling to knock down shots. While doubled, he really had no choice but to pass out of it, taking away OKC’s leading scorer. 

For the second-straight game, Nikola Jokic had really struggled on offense. He still finished the game with 27 points, but it was on 7-for-22 shooting. He added 13 rebounds, three assists and four steals to that stat line as well. Jokic also went 11-for-14 at the free-throw line, finding sanctuary there when shots weren't falling.

Denver guard Christian Braun also found himself having a nice shooting night, especially compared to others. He finished with 17 points on 4-for-11 shooting, hitting big shots to help the Nuggets take the lead.

Outside of Gilgeous-Alexander, there wasn't much production on offense for Oklahoma City. Jalen Williams struggled all night long, scoring 10 points on 2-for-13 shooting. Chet Holmgren also struggled on offense, scoring eight points on 4-for-10 shooting. It would either be on Gilgeous-Alexander or others off the bench to knock down shots while Holmgren and Williams struggled.

That happened at the beginning of the fourth quarter after OKC had fallen behind by seven points. OKC responded with triples from Cason Wallace and Aaron Wiggins to bring the score to only one point, followed by another from Wallace to give the Thunder a two-point lead.

The back-and-forth nature of the game carried into the final minutes, where the Thunder held a minimal five-point lead. After a few stops and a clutch layup from Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC managed to pull away.

Game 5 of the series tips off at 8:30 p.m. CT on Tuesday, May 13, heading back home to Oklahoma City.