Thunder bench records historic 76 points to take 2-1 Western Conference finals lead
Oklahoma City overcomes 15-0 deficit as Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Jared McCain lead charge; series shifts to Game 4 on Sunday
The Oklahoma City Thunder secured a 2-1 series lead in the Western Conference finals with a 123-108 victory over the San Antonio Spurs in Game 3, driven by a historic performance from their reserves. The Thunder’s bench scored 76 points, the highest total by any team in a conference finals game since the NBA adopted the 16-team playoff format in 1984. This output represented 62% of Oklahoma City’s total scoring, a feat no team had achieved in a winning conference finals effort in the past four decades.
The game began with the Spurs establishing a 15-0 lead, the longest opening run in conference finals history since the play-by-play era began in 1997. Thunder coach Mark Daigneault called a timeout after the Spurs’ early surge, which was sparked by De’Aaron Fox, Victor Wembanyama, and Devin Vassell. Oklahoma City responded with a 13-2 run to close the first quarter, trailing 31-26, and maintained momentum throughout the contest to secure the win.
While only two Thunder starters reached double figures, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the team with 26 points and Chet Holmgren added 14. Jared McCain, a midseason acquisition from Philadelphia, scored a playoff-career-high 24 points. Forward Jaylin Williams, playing despite left hamstring issues for guard Jalen Williams, hit five three-pointers to finish with a playoff-career-high 18 points. Alex Caruso contributed 15 points, marking the best three-game scoring span of his career with 63 points total in the series.
For the Spurs, Victor Wembanyama led all scorers with 24 points, while Vassell added 20 and Fox scored 15 in his series debut. The game saw heightened tensions in the second half when Stephon Castle hit back-to-back dunk attempts. The second dunk resulted in a flagrant 1 foul against Ajay Mitchell and technical fouls on both Mitchell and Vassell following an exchange of words.
The victory marks the second straight win for Oklahoma City after the Spurs’ double-overtime victory in Game 1. The Western Conference finals series now shifts to Game 4 on Sunday.
