How OKC Thunder managed to 'flip the page' vs Pelicans in Game 2 of NBA playoffs
Jayson Tatum slammed the ball in frustration, sending it high into the air at TD Garden as the final buzzer sounded.
It marked the end of a frustrating Wednesday night for Boston, which dropped Game 2 at home against a short-handed Miami team. It also marked the third time this NBA playoffs that a lower seed tied its respective series at 1-1 with a road win.
The Thunder refused to add to that total.
After escaping Game 1 with a two-point victory, No. 1-seeded OKC left no doubt in Game 2 against No. 8 New Orleans on Wednesday. It roared to a 124-92 win, which is the biggest margin of victory in the playoffs so far.
"I thought we had great recognition of how we needed to attack tonight," OKC head coach Mark Daigneault said. "I thought it was really good 48-minute execution out of the team."
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An upset loss could've been in the forecast for the Thunder if it played the way it did in Game 1.
Maybe the shaky performance was due to inexperience for OKC, which had seven players make their playoff debut. Maybe it was due to the rust that formed throughout the team's six-day break leading up to the contest.
Either way, OKC shot just 43.5% from the floor and scored fewer than 100 points for the first time since March 10.
New Orleans also seemed to be due for a bounce-back performance in Game 2. The Pelicans boast the best regular-season road record in the league (28-14), and they looked determined to tie the series in the early going on Wednesday.
New Orleans fed the ball to Jonas Valanciunas, who outmuscled Chet Holmgren in the paint and scored the team's first 11 points. But Holmgren, quite literally, found his footing.
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The rookie center dug his feet into the floor of the Paycom Center, budging less and less every time Valanciunas tried to back him down. And with Valanciunas neutralized, OKC took a 35-22 lead into the second quarter.
"It was critical (that) we got an early grip on the game," Daigneault said. "I thought our players did a great job of understanding the mentality of our opponent coming in."
Holmgren helped OKC get a grip on the game, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander helped maintain it.
The sixth-year guard played freely as he racked up a game-high 33 points. He weaved through the Pelicans' defense on drives to the rim. He showed no hesitation letting it fly from behind the arc, going 3 for 5.
Clearly, Gilgeous-Alexander was unbothered by the chaos going on in other playoff matchups.
"Personally, I didn't think anything of it," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "Being in this league for as long as I have and seeing the series that I have, you have to be able to flip the page. I think that's how you get the best results, and I think we did so. We did a good job of it, and that's why we got the result we wanted."
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The rest of the Thunder's players followed Gilgeous-Alexander's lead.
Despite entering the season with the second-youngest roster in the league, OKC continues to display maturity in the playoffs. It grinded out a win in Game 1, and it didn't fall victim to a let-down performance in Game 2.
The Thunder just took care of business and protected home court.
"I think it just goes back to us prioritizing winning," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "All those things are distractions that get in the way of winning. Every night, all 15 of us go to bed and want to win the next game, want to win the next day. And we do everything we can do so."
OKC holds a 2-0 series lead, but it now faces a new challenge.
The next two games of the best-of-seven series will be in New Orleans. Game 3 is set for 2:30 p.m. Saturday (TNT).
"It's a long series," Daigneault said. "They've got good players, and they're well-coached. We have to have the same type of approach and understanding of the way that they're going to come out and get ourselves to that level again."
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This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: How OKC Thunder managed to 'flip the page' vs Pelicans in Game 2 win
