Thunder survive the Chris Paul experience, beat Suns for second win in a row

After a full season of watching Chris Paul lead the Thunder to victory, Oklahoma City saw his takeover of a game from the other side.

It didn’t matter. OKC overcame Paul’s season-high 32 points to defeat the Phoenix Suns 102-97.

“We course corrected in-game and showed some toughness,” head coach Mark Daigneault said. “I think we continue to learn lessons. We had a five-game trip and we try to evaluate these in totality. I thought this trip was good for us.”

The Thunder were outscored by 15 in the first quarter as they struggled to produce offense. Seven of their first nine shots were from deep, and through six minutes, they only had seven points to show for it. The Suns rattled off 32 point.

The game flipped in the second quarter when Phoenix stalled. The Suns ended the second quarter on a 1-for-15 stretch and the Thunder held them to just 10 points in the frame to take a 45-42 lead into halftime.

That’s when Paul broke out. He had a stretch in the third in which he accounted for 20 straight Suns points, scoring 10 points and assisting three others, before being subbed out. He more or less single-handedly dragged the Suns back over the Thunder as Phoenix took a 64-59 lead when he checked out with 4:12 to go in the third.

He came back in less than three minutes later and didn’t step off the court again. He scored 11 points in a row in the fourth quarter.

The Thunder slowed him down by attacking him harder on the high pick-and-rolls. Lu Dort drew multiple offensive fouls on screens, and the Thunder pulled back ahead.

“Defensively, our mental focus was very good,” center Al Horford said. “We continued to get stops we needed to down the stretch, and not only get stops, but get rebounds.”

While Paul starred for the Suns, the Thunder’s veteran’s return was just as impactful for OKC.

Horford, back with the Thunder after missing six games for the birth of his child, dominated on both sides of the ball. His 21 points and 11 rebounds were both the second-most he’s had in a Thunder uniform, and his three steals and five 3-pointers were season-highs. He was perfect from deep and went 8-for-12 from the field.

On defense, he helped hold Suns center Deandre Ayton to five points on 2-for-7 shooting.

As good as Ayton can be, like his last four games in which he averaged about 22 points and 15 rebounds per contest, he has a tendency to go through entire games where he’s not aggressive and relies on fadeaways out of the post. The Thunder forced him into that tonight, cutting off the spin move he likes using to get to the rim, and Horford was a prime piece of the puzzle that held strong and kept power in front of him.

“He’s a guy that you can’t be second to contact with him,” Daigneault said. “He’s developing ability an ability to duck in and to get on glass and that was a huge emphasis with him.”

As Ayton struggled, Horford had arguably his best game of the season. The two weeks off did him well. He said the Thunder had a support group remain in OKC with him to help him train and condition so he would stay sharp during the hiatus.

The Thunder fell behind 95-91 with 3:29 to play but went on a 7-0 run that culminated in an aggressive drive and layup by rookie Theo Maledon, starting the second game in a row in place of the injured George Hill.

Maledon drove past Paul and attacked Ayton at the hoop coming off a screen and finished off the glass.

After not closing the game against the Portland Trail Blazers on Monday, Maledon earned the closing spot Wednesday. He finished with 11 points and six boards.

Phoenix only made one field goal over the final five minutes. It was the third game in a row they collapsed down the stretch, and one of the keys was Dort drawing fouls off the screens. He did so three times over the final 5:01 of the game.

“Those were unbelievable plays,” Daigneault said.

Dort explained that his speed helps him get to his spot quicker and draw those types of fouls.

“I can move my feet really fast, the screener’s just gotta be set. If they move, it’s illegal. I’m just really trying to stay in front of the ball, and if it happens, it happens,” he said.

After their slow start from 3, the Thunder finished 16-for-40 from behind the arc. Horford hit five, Dort had four and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made two and finished with 21 points.

The third-year guard was again the key offensive driver late, scoring eight points in the final five minutes and assisting another basket. Daigneault credited Gilgeous-Alexander’s management of the court late.

“When the ball moves and different guys are involved, it builds confidence, it builds chemistry … Chris has it down to and art, he’s an unbelievable game manager and has an unbelievable feel for how to do that. I think that’s a developing skill for Shai,” Daigneault said.

“He’s had a really good balance on this trip where understands how to choose his spots but he also understands how to trust guys.”

It was the Chris Paul experience from the other bench, but the Thunder overcame it. They’re now winners of two in a row and finish the road trip 2-3.