Thunder complete 4-0 sweep of Lakers

The Oklahoma City Thunder closed out the Los Angeles Lakers 115-110 on Monday night in Los Angeles, finishing a 4-0 Western Conference semifinal sweep and returning to the Western Conference finals. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 35 points, Ajay Mitchell added a playoff career-high 28, and Chet Holmgren broke the late tie with a dunk with 32.8 seconds left, according to NBA and game recap reports. The win kept Oklahoma City unbeaten in the postseason at 8-0 and completed an eight-game season sweep of the Lakers. The series was not a one-game outlier. Oklahoma City won Game 1 by 18 points, Game 2 by 18, Game 3 by 23 and Game 4 by five, for a 479-415 edge in the four playoff games. Combined with four regular-season wins, the Thunder outscored the Lakers by 181 points across eight meetings this season, based on the official series page and schedule results. ### How did Oklahoma City finish the sweep in Game 4? (cbssports.com) Game 4 turned in the final minute. Holmgren’s dunk put Oklahoma City ahead 111-110 with 32.8 seconds remaining after Marcus Smart’s three-point play had briefly given Los Angeles a one-point lead, the game recap said. Gilgeous-Alexander then made two free throws, and Austin Reaves missed a tying 3-point attempt in the closing seconds. (nba.com) Ajay Mitchell supplied much of the late scoring. Mitchell scored 10 of his 28 points in the fourth quarter, while Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers with 35 as Oklahoma City absorbed its first fourth-quarter deficit of the postseason and still closed the game out. ### What did the Lakers get from LeBron James and the rest of the lineup? LeBron James finished with 24 points and 14 rebounds in what became the Lakers’ final game of the season. (cbssports.com) Austin Reaves scored 27 points, and Rui Hachimura added 25, including nine in the fourth quarter, according to the game recap. The Lakers were also missing Luka Doncic. Doncic, who the recap said missed the final 15 games of the season with a grade 2 hamstring strain suffered on April 2 in Oklahoma City, watched the finale from the bench. (cbssports.com) Los Angeles still pushed the Thunder late, but the loss ended the team’s season short of the conference finals for a third straight year, according to the same report. ### How dominant was the series before the closeout? Oklahoma City controlled the matchup from the start. The Thunder won the first two games at home by scores of 108-90 and 125-107, then took Game 3 in Los Angeles 131-108 before the tighter finish in Game 4. The official NBA playoff schedule lists the final series result as 4-0. Series averages show the same gap. Oklahoma City averaged 119.8 points to the Lakers’ 103.8 over the four games, while Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder in the matchup at 24.5 points per game and James led Los Angeles at 23.3. (cbssports.com) ### Who do the Thunder play next, and when will that be decided? The Western Conference finals opponent is not set yet. The NBA’s playoff schedule lists Oklahoma City against the winner of the San Antonio Spurs-Minnesota Timberwolves series, with Game 1 in Oklahoma City still marked TBD. (nba.com) San Antonio leads Minnesota 3-2 after winning Game 5, according to the league schedule. Game 6 is set for Friday, May 15, at 9:30 p.m. (nba.com) Eastern on Prime Video, and a Game 7, if necessary, would be Sunday, May 17. The NBA Finals are scheduled to begin June 3 on ABC. (nba.com)