Spurs beat Thunder 122-115 double OT

San Antonio’s 122-115 double-overtime win over Oklahoma City on May 18 gave the Western Conference finals an immediate classic and handed the Spurs home-court advantage. Victor Wembanyama finished with 41 points and 24 rebounds in Game 1, while Dylan Harper added 24 points and a team playoff-record seven steals, according to the Associated Press. Two days later, Oklahoma City responded with a 122-113 Game 2 victory behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 30 points and nine assists, leveling the series at 1-1. ESPN and NBA.com said Game 1 averaged 9.2 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, the largest audience for a Western Conference finals Game 1 on record. ### How did Game 1 get so big so fast? Monday’s opener turned on Wembanyama, who forced double overtime and finished with one of the biggest statistical lines of this postseason. AP said the Spurs star posted 41 points and 24 rebounds as San Antonio won on the road at Paycom Center in Oklahoma City. Harper’s seven steals set a Spurs playoff record, AP reported. (apnews.com) The 122-115 final also landed in a broader oddity for the league. AP reported that both conference finals openers went to overtime, the first time that had happened in NBA history, and that both games were tied 101-101 at the end of regulation. ### What do the ratings say about the matchup? (apnews.com) NBC and Peacock drew an average audience of 9.2 million viewers for Spurs-Thunder Game 1, according to ESPN’s report and an NBA.com audience release. NBA.com called it the highest average viewership for a Game 1 in Western Conference finals history. Sports Media Watch reported the combined audience was 9.16 million, including 6.91 million from Nielsen and 2.25 million from streaming measured by Adobe Analytics, and said the telecast peaked at 12.0 million viewers in the 11:30 p.m. (wtop.com) Eastern quarter-hour. That audience jump came against a recent benchmark. Sports Media Watch said the opener was up 71% from Timberwolves-Thunder Game 1 on ESPN last year. ### How did Oklahoma City answer in Game 2? Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 30 points on May 20 and added nine assists as Oklahoma City beat San Antonio 122-113 to even the series, AP reported. (nba.com) Alex Caruso scored 17 points off the bench, and NBA.com said the Thunder used pressure defense and timely shooting after dropping the opener in double overtime. (sportsmediawatch.com) The Game 2 response mattered for a Thunder team that had opened the series at home and lost control of home court in Game 1. AP described Gilgeous-Alexander’s performance as a bounce-back after what it called a subpar opener. The Athletic’s live coverage said Isaiah Hartenstein added 10 points and 13 rebounds while helping defend Wembanyama. (apnews.com) ### What has defined the series through two games? The first two games have produced 481 total points and one split in Oklahoma City. San Antonio took the opener behind Wembanyama’s 41-point, 24-rebound night, and Oklahoma City answered with a nine-point win behind Gilgeous-Alexander’s 30-point, nine-assist line. (apnews.com) The matchup has also put two young cores at the center of the league’s late-round spotlight. NBA.com’s playoff page lists the series at 1-1 after two games, with San Antonio having stolen one on the road before Oklahoma City restored the split. ### Where does the series go next? Game 3 moves to San Antonio on Saturday, May 23, with the series tied 1-1, according to the NBA playoff schedule. (apnews.com) The next step is straightforward: the Spurs will try to build on the road split at home, and the Thunder will try to reclaim control after protecting the split in Game 2. (nba.com)