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Thunder all business after Game 1 shocker

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OAKLAND – After a dagger-like three-pointer from Stephen Curry to beat the halftime buzzer gave the Golden State Warriors a 60-47 lead, the Oklahoma City Thunder didn’t wilt.

The Thunder – who are peaking at the right time after dispatching the 67-win San Antonio Spurs in six games – played with composure that you’ll rarely see from a visiting team playing at Oracle Arena.

Despite Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook combining to shoot 17 for 51 from the field, the Thunder stole Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals, defeating the defending champions 108-102.

Durant – who played every second in the second half – iced this game with a 17-foot pull-up jumper to give the Thunder a commanding 105-100 lead with 30 seconds left.

What was most impressive about the win for the Thunder were the way the players walked off the court after the final horn sounded. There was no celebrating, choreographed high-fives or chest bumping; they walked back into the locker room like a team cool and calm, a team expecting to send the home crowd home scratching their heads with a look of befuddlement.

“I mean, what’s to celebrate? We didn’t win a championship,” said Durant, who finished with 26 points and 10 rebounds despite going 10 for 30 from the field. “We’re playing in the Western Conference Finals against a great team. It was a good win for us, but we’re not going to be jumping up and down, chest-bumping on the court. We’ve got a lot more basketball to play.”

Durant’s right, there is a lot more basketball to play. The scary part is the Thunder didn’t play great offensively. They won by handcuffing the Warriors in the fourth quarter, holding them to 14 points in the final 12 minutes.

The Splash Brothers were held to three points in the final frame (Curry three-pointer with 4:28 left). Not only were the Thunder fundamentally solid defensively, they committed one single turnover in the second half.

“I thought it was a story of two halves for us,” head coach Billy Donovan said. “I thought in the second half we did a much, much better job. We took better care of the basketball which enabled us to get back in transition, and I think probably play better defense.”

Playing better defense is what the Thunder did in the second half, holding the Warriors to one fast break point in the second half after getting torched for 22 in the first 24 minutes.

Thunder center Steven Adams – who is emerging as one of the best centers in the NBA, averaging over 10 points and 10 rebounds a game during the playoffs – was a +19 on the floor, crashing the boards and anchoring the Thunder defense.

“We’re maturing mentally,” Adams said. “We’re not able to not get discouraged at all and just maintain discipline.”

Another guy who had a forgettable first half was the man who plays like he’s chugged eight venti cups of coffee from Starbucks, set the tone in the second half with 19-third quarter points with seven coming from the free throw line.

Westbrook – who finished with 27 points, 12 assists and seven steals – is the epitome of what this Oklahoma City Thunder team is all about; a resilient bunch who can produce long stretches of futility, but have the irrational confidence to do whatever it takes to win.

For the defending champs, they haven’t faced anything like this during this historic two-year stretch. With two of the five best players in the NBA, and a front-court full of athletic bigs, the Warriors are in for the fight of their lives against a team just as desperate as them.


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