Thunder Beat Nuggets, 96–84, After Second-Half Turnaround

Jalen Williams scored 21 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets 96–84 on Thursday at Paycom Center.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 17 points, while Chet Holmgren finished with 12 points, 17 rebounds and four blocks. Ajay Mitchell scored 12 points and had five steals; Cason Wallace added nine points and four steals.

Denver led 27–24 after the first quarter and 48–44 at halftime. Oklahoma City outscored the Nuggets 26–16 in the third quarter to take a 70–64 lead, then added a 26–20 fourth quarter. The Thunder’s second-half advantage was 52–36.

Aaron Gordon led Denver with 20 points, making six of nine shots and three of four three-point attempts. Nikola Jokić and DeMar DeRozan each scored 13. Jokić was 5 of 19 from the field, while Jamal Murray finished with six points on 2-of-11 shooting.

Denver committed 22 player turnovers compared with Oklahoma City’s 12. The Thunder made 13 of 14 free throws; the Nuggets were 14 of 22.