Thunder beat Jazz behind Shai-Gilgeous Alexander's big night

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images

Thunder beat Jazz in OT behind Shai-Gilgeous Alexander's big night

By Samuel Stubbs | Last updated Jan 7, 2026 11:30 PM ET

Shai-Gilgeous Alexander scored the game-tying shot to send Wednesday's game against the Utah Jazz to overtime and iced the game with two free throws to lead the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 129-125 victory.

SGA scored 44 points, including a game-tying jumper at the fourth quarter buzzer to tie the game at 112-112.

And after a hotly contested overtime period, it was Chet Holmgren who put OKC up 124-122 and Gilgeous-Alexander who snagged the biggest rebound of the evening before knocking down a pair of clutch free throws.

After Utah hit a three to make the score 127-125, Gilgeous-Alexander hit two more to officially clinch the win.

Shai sends us to OT‼️

Your @OGandE Power Play of the Game pic.twitter.com/LyE7nDcHK1
— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 8, 2026

Win could put OKC back on track

Oklahoma City started the season 24-1 before a 6-6 stretch knocked it down to 30-7. The Thunder lost consecutive games to the Suns and Hornets coming into Wednesday's game.

Wednesday's win over a mediocre Utah team wasn't the most inspiring performance that Mark Daigneault's squad could've put on the floor of the Paycom Center, but OKC is at least back in the win column. The Thunder will travel to Memphis on Friday to play the Grizzlies.

Meanwhile, Wednesday's loss is the fifth consecutive for the Jazz (12-24). Utah has yet to win more than two consecutive games this season and seems destined for a fourth consecutive losing season.

Samuel Stubbs

Hailing from the same neck of the woods as NASCAR Hall of Famer Mark Martin, Samuel has been covering NASCAR for Yardbarker since February 2024. He has been a member of the National Motorsports Press Association (NMPA) since October of 2024. When he’s not writing about racing, Samuel covers Arkansas Razorback basketball for Yardbarker

More must-reads: