Oklahoma City Thunder's Shai Gilgeous-Alexander Lights Up Cleveland Cavaliers in Win

The Oklahoma City Thunder topped the Cleveland Cavaliers 112-100 on Thursday night thanks to another spectacular performance from emerging superstar Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The 24-year-old Canadian posted 35 points, eight assists, five rebounds, two steals, and a block.

Coming into the night focused on defense, the Thunder out rebounded the Cavaliers 46-37 in an impressive 112-100 comeback victory.

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— OKC THUNDER (@okcthunder) January 28, 2023

Gilgeous-Alexander hit 12 of his 21 field goal attempts and 10 of his 11 free throw attempts. It was his fourth straight game with 34 or more points and his 29th 30+ point game of the season. For the season, he's averaging a deadly 30.9 points per game with an efficient .627 true shooting percentage. Only Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid exceeds Gilgeous-Alexander in both categories, and he's played 10 fewer games.

Gilgeous-Alexander's stellar play has the Thunder at a shocking 24-25 and 11th in the Western Conference, or a half-game outside of the play-in tournament. After earning the second overall pick in the 2022 NBA Draft, the Thunder have already tied their best win total over the past three years, and a hot finish to the season could bring them all the way to the playoffs. Gilgeous-Alexander has almost single-handedly accelerated the Thunder's timeline: a dramatic offseason may be enough to transform them into a consistent contender.

The Thunder host the Golden State Warriors on Sunday night.