Thunder earn West’s No. 1 seed in blowout win vs Mavericks

SHAI Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 points in just 16 minutes as the Oklahoma City Thunder left no doubt, blowing out the visiting Dallas Mavericks 135-86 on Sunday.

The Thunder (57-25) finished the regular season with a five-game winning streak to claim the top spot in the Western Conference for the first time since the 2012-13 season.

With the Mavericks’ (50-32) playoff position set, they sat all of their starters other than Tim Hardaway, Jr.

That included Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving, who rested for the second consecutive game as Dallas prepares for its playoff opener against the Clippers.

Oklahoma City had no such certainty going into the day, as they were part of a three-way tie with Denver and Minnesota for the top spot in the West. The Oklahoma City Thunder held both the tiebreaker with the Nuggets and the three-way tiebreaker. Denver winning sealed the Thunder’s playoff position.

Oklahoma City quickly made it apparent they would take care of their part, scoring the game’s first 11 points to build a lead it would never relinquish.

That didn’t stop Oklahoma City from stretching its lead. The Thunder led by as many as 55 in the third quarter and led by as many as 58 in the fourth. — Reuters