The sizzling-hot Oklahoma City Thunder continued their torrid pace, routing the Phoenix Suns 140-109 on Wednesday night to improve their NBA-best record to a remarkable 40-9. Once again, it was superstar guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander putting on an absolute show.
SGA’s Scoring Explosion
For the third time in a span of just seven games, Gilgeous-Alexander exploded for 50 points – a feat achieved by only nine players in NBA history. His latest masterpiece came on the heels of a career-high 54 points against the Utah Jazz on January 29th and 52 points in a win over the Golden State Warriors a week ago.
It’s unfathomable…to do what he’s doing. The numbers and the wins speak for themselves.
Thunder Head Coach Mark Daigneault
Durant’s Absence Felt
The Suns were missing their own superstar Kevin Durant, who sat out with a sprained left ankle. The 36-year-old forward, in his first season with Phoenix, remains 26 points shy of reaching the 30,000 career points milestone. His absence was glaring as the Suns simply had no answer for Gilgeous-Alexander and the surging Thunder.
Thunder Faithful Show Love
Oklahoma City fans showered their appreciation on SGA, serenading him with “M-V-P” chants throughout the night – the same chants once reserved for Durant during his time starring for the Thunder. The symmetry was lost on no one as the OKC faithful are clearly all-in on their new franchise cornerstone.
Dominant Second Half
Despite trailing the Suns 63-61 at halftime, the Thunder came out of the locker room on fire. A 13-0 run gave OKC a lead they would never relinquish as Gilgeous-Alexander continued to pour it on. His steal and breakaway dunk stretched the advantage to 81-65 midway through the third quarter.
50-Point Capper
SGA tallied his 50th point on – what else? – a smooth baseline jumper early in the fourth quarter to push the Thunder lead to a whopping 30 points at 114-84. He then took a well-deserved seat on the bench with the game well in hand.
| SGA’s Monster Stretch | PTS | Result |
| Feb 6 vs Suns | 50 | 140-109 W |
| Jan 31 vs Warriors | 52 | 122-110 W |
| Jan 29 vs Jazz | 54 | 129-119 W |
Key Stats and Highlights
- The Thunder scored 23 points off 22 Suns turnovers
- OKC shot an impressive 40/60 on shots inside the arc
- The Thunder’s 140 points were a season high
- Lu Dort had a highlight reel block on Bradley Beal
With the triumph, the Thunder have now won six straight and nine of their last ten. At 40-9, they own a commanding seven game lead over the Denver Nuggets for the top spot in the Western Conference. And there appears to be no slowing down Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, who is making a compelling case for MVP with each sensational performance.
