The Golden State Warriors beat the Oklahoma City Thunder 141-139 in the franchise’s first ever postseason tournament game. In a spectacular offensive extravaganza, on the brightest blue basketball floor you’ve probably ever seen, the Dubs managed to remain unbeaten on the road. The Warriors are currently tied for second place in the Western Conference at 5-1 on the young season.

From the opening tip on, both teams battled for every basket in the first quarter. The Dubs were scoring at will, but the Thunder appeared invincible. The Warriors didn’t play great defense, but the Thunder’s youthful, dynamic offense was able to score on every possession. This was especially true of players like Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams.

Whenever Steve Kerr has resorted to his bench this season, the team has calmed down. Dario ari went on a scoring tear in the third, sinking three 3-pointers on his way to a game-high 11 points, while Chris Paul served as an emotional ballast. The Warriors took a 38-33 lead after a thrilling first quarter. Ari scored 20 points at the end of the day.

The Thunder didn’t slow down in the second period. From all throughout the court, they continued to fire and strike. There were several moments when the Dubs had a solution, but their own sloppiness ultimately cost them. The Warriors weren’t only making turnovers, but they were the kind that resulted in easy points for the other team.

However, Steph Curry’s brilliant play and some outstanding ball movement helped spur 31 points in the second quarter. Golden State led 69-67 at halftime despite Klay Thompson’s stunning effort at a buzzer-beating three being waived off when video review showed the ball still in his hands as the clock expired.

   

Lu Dort swiftly crushed any expectations that the team may improve its defensive performance against Oklahoma City in the second half. Dort shot 9-for-9 from the field and 6-for-6 from long range in the middle portion of the third quarter, on route to 16 points. But once again, Golden State’s offense wasn’t going anywhere.

There was still plenty of time to see if either side could keep up their remarkable scoring pace with the Warriors behind 127-125 midway through the fourth quarter. Even though the Thunder were more effective overall, Golden State was able to keep things close by making good use of their second chances.

Andrew Wiggins’ increased activity on the offensive boards helped the Warriors get a number of second chances throughout the game. Due to the Dubs’ ability to staunch the bleeding, Thompson was able to hit a game-tying three-pointer in the last minutes of regulation. With only 10 shots from deep, Thompson scored 18 points.

Neither team’s offense got going in the last minutes, but the Thunder won 136-133 after Williams made a bank jumper and a pair of free throws. Curry made it a one-point game for the Warriors with a driving layup in the last seconds. Then, Gary Payton II forced a theft that was scooped up by Thompson. The fouls started right away for Thompson.

Thompson scored with 38.8 seconds left to put the Warriors up 137-136. Golden State was already in the bonus.

The Thunder went into timeout and came back out with Holmgren matched up against Green. The former second overall choice drove inside and got a blocking foul with 32.5 seconds remaining. Holmgren scored on both extra points, giving Oklahoma City a 138-137 lead.

Green did not waste time by idling outside but instead went inside promptly. Because the Thunder were so concerned with denying Curry the ball, they opened up a lanes for GPII to drive the court and score. In a flash, Green passed the ball to Payton, who scored an alley-oop layup.

Dort got another foul at the opposite end, but he could only make half of his free throw attempts. With the score tied at 139, the Warriors held possession of the ball with 16.4 seconds remaining.

After waiting until there were only eight seconds remaining, the Warriors in-bounded the ball to Curry. He sped past Dort with a crossover, but Holmgren crossed across to attempt and prevent the shot. Curry threw a layup that somehow went through Holmgren’s hands, off the backboard, and in.

But the officials blew the whistle after a call of basket interference by Green. Review revealed that Green had made contact with the hoop, but that Josh Giddey had made contact with the net earlier, allowing the Warriors to claim victory.

Curry scored 28 points, grabbed eight boards, dished out seven assists, and stole two bases while shooting 8-for-14 from the field (5-for-10 from deep).