By: Josh Lea (joshdlea)
The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Detroit Pistons 114-103, making them 1-1 on their current three-game road trip. In the fourth quarter, the Thunder outscored the Pistons 42-22 to end their eight-game losing streak. Furthermore, the Thunder scored 58 points in the paint against the Pistons. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 30 points on 9-of-20 shooting and had a career-high 13 assists. Lou Dort went 5-of-10 from three, finishing the game with 28 points.
The defense became the focus in the third quarter, and the fourth quarter was an offensive display. OKC shot 17-of-19 (89.5%) from the floor, including 13 straight made field goals, which led to the 42 point explosion in the fourth. Kendrich Williams received high praise from the Thunder head coach following the game. Williams was plus 22 on the night in the raw plus-minus.
Former OSU point guard and number pick Cade Cunningham scored 28 points for the Pistons and grabbed 11 rebounds. However, it wasn’t enough as OKC won 114-103. The Thunder will play Toronto on Wednesday night at 6:30.