Thunder beat Spurs 120-101 in Game 3 of the Western Conference finals

Oklahoma City took a 2-1 lead in the Western Conference finals on Friday night with a 123-108 win over San Antonio at Frost Bank Center. The Thunder recovered from a 15-0 opening deficit and leaned on a second unit that produced a franchise-record 76 points, according to NBA.com and NBC Sports. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 26 points and 12 assists, while Victor Wembanyama scored 26 for the Spurs. Game 4 is set for Sunday in San Antonio. ### How did Oklahoma City flip a game that started 15-0 for San Antonio? San Antonio opened with the first 15 points, but Oklahoma City settled once its bench rotation entered. NBC Sports reported that Alex Caruso and Jaylin Williams helped change the pace early, and the Thunder never looked rattled after the first-quarter surge. (nba.com) The Thunder finished the night shooting 48.1% from the field and 44.7% from 3-point range, while San Antonio shot 42.5% overall and 31.7% from deep. Oklahoma City also had 29 assists to the Spurs’ 26 and outscored San Antonio by 15 over the full game. ### Which numbers best explain the result? The clearest number was 76. Oklahoma City’s reserves scored 76 points, a franchise record, with Jared McCain scoring 24, Jaylin Williams 18, Alex Caruso 15 and Cason Wallace 11. (nbcsports.com) NBC Sports said the Spurs had no answer for the “constant flow of fresh legs” from the Thunder bench. (nba.com) The starters’ balance still mattered. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 26 points on 12-for-12 free-throw shooting and added 12 assists, while Chet Holmgren had 14 points. For San Antonio, Wembanyama had 26 points, Devin Vassell scored 20 and De’Aaron Fox added 15 points, seven rebounds and six assists. ### Where did San Antonio lose control? NBC Sports pointed to the non-Wembanyama minutes. (nbcsports.com) The outlet reported that the Spurs were outscored by 19 points in the seven minutes Wembanyama sat before late garbage time, and that split captured how strongly Oklahoma City’s bench units controlled the game. (nba.com) The box score shows the same pressure points. San Antonio committed 15 turnovers to Oklahoma City’s 10, and several Spurs rotation players finished with large negative plus-minus numbers, including Keldon Johnson at minus-23 and Luke Kornet at minus-18. Oklahoma City, by contrast, got plus-28 from both Caruso and McCain. ### Who were the key individual contributors off the bench? (nbcsports.com) Jared McCain delivered the biggest scoring punch with 24 points in 26:44. Jaylin Williams added a playoff career-high 18 points and hit five 3-pointers, while Caruso supplied 15 points, three steals and the defensive activity that NBC Sports highlighted repeatedly in its live coverage. (nba.com) Cason Wallace gave Oklahoma City another 11 points, five rebounds and four assists. That depth allowed Thunder coach Mark Daigneault to keep fresh lineups on the floor while San Antonio searched for combinations that could hold the margin. ### What does the series schedule look like from here? NBA.com lists Game 4 for Sunday, May 24, at 8:00 p.m. (nba.com) ET in San Antonio, with NBC and Peacock carrying the telecast. The same series page lists Game 5 for Tuesday, May 26, back in Oklahoma City if needed. The series averages through three games show Oklahoma City at 120.0 points per game and San Antonio at 114.3. (nba.com) Gilgeous-Alexander leads Oklahoma City in the series at 26.7 points per game, while Wembanyama is averaging 29.3 points and 15.0 rebounds for San Antonio, according to NBA.com. (nba.com)