Spurs win Game 1 in double overtime, take opening lead vs Thunder

Victor Wembanyama gave San Antonio the kind of Game 1 road win that can reshape a series before it settles in. The Spurs beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 122-115 in double overtime on Monday, May 18, at Paycom Center, taking a 1-0 lead in the Western Conference finals and stealing home-court advantage. Wembanyama finished with 41 points and 24 rebounds, according to NBA.com’s game recap, and San Antonio got another 24 points from Dylan Harper. Oklahoma City, which had entered the series unbeaten in the postseason, could not close after forcing extra periods at home. ### How did San Antonio get out of Oklahoma City with Game 1? San Antonio won the game in the second overtime, when Wembanyama closed it with two dunks in the final minute, one of them a three-point play, NBA.com’s recap said. The Spurs outlasted the Thunder 122-115 after regulation and the first overtime failed to separate the teams. (nba.com) Dylan Harper gave San Antonio a second major scoring and playmaking source. Harper finished with 24 points and a team playoff-record seven steals, while Stephon Castle added 17 points and 11 rebounds, according to NBA.com’s series page and game summary. Devin Vassell and Keldon Johnson each scored 13, and Julian Champagnie added 11. (nba.com) ### What made Wembanyama’s night stand out? Victor Wembanyama became the youngest player with at least 40 points and 20 rebounds in a playoff game, NBA.com’s recap said. The site listed him at 22 years, 134 days, younger than Kareem Abdul-Jabbar was when he posted a 40-point, 20-rebound playoff game in the 1970 NBA Finals. (nba.com) Wembanyama called it “a great effort - from everybody” after the win. NBA.com’s recap also said he sealed the result late, underscoring how much of San Antonio’s offense and finishing burden ran through him in the extra sessions. ### Why was this a missed opening for Oklahoma City? Oklahoma City got 31 points from Alex Caruso off the bench, the second-highest scoring game of his career, and 26 points from Jalen Williams in his return from a six-game absence caused by a hamstring strain, NBA.com said. (nba.com) Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 24 points and 12 assists on the night he received his second straight Most Valuable Player trophy. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander shot 7-for-23, according to NBA.com’s recap, and the Thunder’s nine-game playoff winning streak dating to Game 7 of last season’s Finals ended in the loss. NBA.com’s series page said Oklahoma City entered the matchup as the No. 1 seed, with San Antonio the No. 2 seed. ### What changed the series immediately? (nba.com) Game 1 gave San Antonio home-court advantage and its fifth win in six meetings with Oklahoma City this season, NBA.com’s recap said. The result also came with De’Aaron Fox unavailable because of ankle stiffness, leaving the Spurs to piece together offense and late-game creation around Wembanyama, Harper and Castle. NBA.com’s playoff page lists the series as Spurs leading 1-0, with San Antonio averaging 122.0 points through one game to Oklahoma City’s 115.0. That edge now sends pressure to the Thunder before the series shifts to Texas later this week. ### When is the next game? Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday, May 20, at 8:30 p.m. (nba.com) ET in Oklahoma City, according to NBA.com’s game page and NBC’s series schedule. NBC said the Western Conference finals will air exclusively on NBC and Peacock from May 18 through May 30. Game 3 is scheduled for Friday, May 22, and Game 4 for Sunday, May 24, with both games shifting to San Antonio, according to NBA.com’s series page. (nba.com) If necessary, Games 5 through 7 are set for May 26, May 28 and May 30. (nba.com)