Thunder vs. Bulls: Five takeaways from OKC's overtime win against Chicago

The Thunder played a home overtime game for the second time in three nights.

This time, Oklahoma City finished on top.

The Thunder beat the Bulls 123-119 on Friday night at Paycom Center.

Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, showered with MVP chants once again, iced the game with five free throws in the final 27 seconds.

SGA drained the go-ahead free throws thanks to a savvy 3-point shot fake that Bulls guard DeMar DeRozan — the shot fake king — fell for.

Gilgeous-Alexander made all three foul shots to pull the Thunder from a one-point deficit to a two-point lead with 27 seconds left.

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DeRozan, who scored all nine of Chicago’s overtime points, missed a jumper with nine seconds left and the Thunder collected the rebound.

SGA iced the game with two more free throws.

He wasn’t his efficient self (8-of-21 shooting) from the field, but he was 14-of-15 from the free throw line. It was his second straight game with 14 made free throws. SGA also had eight rebounds and seven assists.

The Thunder (8-11) is 2-2 in overtime games.

Thunder guard Lu Dort added unnecessary drama to overtime. With a minute left, Dort was called for a blatant goaltending on an SGA jump shot that would’ve given the Thunder a three-point lead.

On the Bulls’ ensuing possession, Dort fouled DeRozan on a jump shot.

DeRozan scored 30 points on 12-of-27 shooting. The midrange specialist missed his only 3-point attempt.

Chicago’s Zach LaVine got hot late. He finished with 27 points on 9-of-23 shooting.

“The resilience of the group tonight was on full display,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “Competition puts hurdles in front of you that you have to clear.”

Thunder guard Josh Giddey started slow, but he was excellent in overtime. Giddey finished one assist shy of a triple-double: 10 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists.

Giddey played all five minutes in overtime. He scored four points (2-of-2 shooting) with two rebounds and one assist.

“I stayed aggressive,” Giddey said. “I was never going to go into my shell after missing eight shots, 10 shots. Stayed confident and made some plays down the stretch.”

Daigneault said Giddey defended as well as he has all season.

“He really closed the overtime,” Daigneault said.

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Darius Bazley’s two-way contributions

Darius Bazley didn’t bite on DeRozan’s trademark shot fake. Bazley stayed down, and when DeRozan finally went up, Bazley sprang and swatted the shot.

“He’s one of the best at staying down and not fouling a jump shooter,” Daigneault said.

Bazley was the secondary defender on DeRozan and Zach LaVine — Chicago’s go-to scorers.

Bazley’s stingy defense is no surprise, but his offensive contributions were unexpected.

Bazley, who came into the game shooting a career-low 43% from 2-point range, was 5-of-5 from inside the arc. He was 2-of-4 from 3-point range.

It added up to a season-high 17 points for the fourth-year forward.

“Great spark,” Daigneault said. “I thought he made the right plays for most of the night on offense.”

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Third quarters > first quarters

It’s becoming quite the trend.

By net rating, the Thunder ranks 24th in first quarters and first in third quarters.

On Friday, the Bulls took a 9-0 lead before Daigneault saw enough and called timeout.

Thunder fans had to stand back up after the timeout, still waiting on the Thunder’s first points.

The Bulls extended their lead to 14-2, but the Thunder outscored the Bulls 30-16 to end the first quarter with a 32-30 lead.

Gilgeous-Alexander gave the Bulls (Alex Caruso, specifically) fits in the first quarter, scoring 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting. He finished the quarter with a rumbling, stumbling fall away jumper to beat the buzzer.

OKC had a strong close to the first quarter, and the Thunder was good as usual in the third quarter, outscoring the Bulls 28-21.

“One thing about us,” Giddey said, “we never go away.”

The Thunder, heading into Friday, has outscored opponents by 17.6 points per 100 possessions in the third quarter.

Only the Thunder and Suns have a net rating north of 10 in third quarters.

Earlier this year, Daigneault was asked to explain the Thunder’s third-quarter magic.

“Halftime speeches,” Daigneault joked.

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Mark Daigneault, Billy Donovan friendship

Friday marked the fifth time Daigneault has coached against his old boss, Billy Donovan.

Daigneault was on Donovan’s college staff at Florida, and Daigneault was a Thunder assistant under Donovan for one season before Donovan left for the Bulls.

“I love coaching against him and I loved coaching with him,” Daigneault said before the game.

They’ve remained friends off the court, texting now and then throughout the season.

The Bulls didn’t arrive in Oklahoma City until late Thursday night. Had Donovan arrived earlier, he knew he was welcomed to spend Thanksgiving with the Daigneaults.

It’s an invitation Donovan always offered Daigneault.

“If there’s one thing I took from him among everything was his door to his house and his family was always open,” Daigneault said. “I’ve spent many holidays with them when my folks were in Massachusetts.

“I had a couple of our staff members over — our younger, single staff members — yesterday, and I’ve definitely taken that from him, the feeling you get when someone opens their doors to you. Christine and him have always done that. Beyond coaching the game, there’s certainly an impact he’s had on me.”

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Thunder tip-ins

• The Thunder recalled rookie forward Ousmane Dieng from the Blue on Friday. Dieng, who hasn’t played for the Thunder since Nov. 7, will travel with the team on its upcoming road trip to Houston and New Orleans.

• Daigneault complimented the 3-point shot selection of forward/center Jeremiah Robinson-Earl. “You very rarely see him rip one and say, ‘What the hell’s he thinking on that?’” Robinson-Earl is shooting 43% from 3-point range on three attempts per game.

• Thunder starting five: SGA, Giddey, Dort, Jalen Williams, Aleksej Pokusevski. Third time this group started. It’s OKC’s second most-used starting five behind SGA, Giddey, Dort, Poku and JRE.

• The Thunder wore its charcoal and red dirt city edition uniforms for the second time this season.

• Donovan called one of his classic between-free-throws timeouts in the first quarter when Gilgeous-Alexander was at the line. SGA made both of the free throws.

• Aaron Wiggins received another DNP (coach’s decision).

• There was a kiss cam proposal. She said yes.

• The Thunder plays at the Rockets on Saturday night. Any fatigue concerns playing on the second night of a back-to-back after an overtime game? “No,” Poku said. “We’re a bunch of 20-year-olds.”

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, OKC Thunder beat Chicago Bulls in overtime