Oklahoma City Thunder (52-15) beat Boston Celtics (43-23) 104-102 at home on Thursday, March 12. The Celtics led after three quarters, but the Thunder took control in the fourth.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Celtics had the better start, winning the first 28-27 to lead by 1 after one. The Celtics kept the pressure on with a 31-29 second quarter, carrying a 3-point lead into halftime.
The teams matched each other with 24 points apiece in the third quarter, so the Celtics remained ahead by 3 entering the fourth. The Thunder took the fourth 24-19; the Thunder completed the comeback for a 104-102 regulation win.
What decided it
The Thunder got more from their shots, finishing at 54.2% effective field-goal shooting compared with 47.7% for the Celtics. In a 2-point game, that shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Celtics did win one battle, the free-throw line: FT rate of 21.8 against 15.5. The Thunder made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 94 possessions per team, the Thunder produced 110.5 points per 100 possessions to 108.3 for the Celtics.
Who made the difference
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander was the game's biggest individual force for OKC: 35 pts, 6 reb, 9 ast, 3 blk on 13-18 shooting. His Game Score of 35 led everyone. His team was +14 with him on the floor.
Jaylen Brown led the Celtics with 34 pts, 6 reb, 7 ast on 10-25 shooting, good for a 21.9 Game Score.
What it means
The result fit the pre-game Win Meter, which gave the Thunder about a 71% chance.
Across the last 2 meetings in our records, Oklahoma City Thunder lead 2-0.
The Thunder are now 52-15, and the Celtics are 43-23. The Thunder last five before this game: W-W-W-W-W.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.