SGA held to 17, ending streak as Thunder top Nuggets

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s run of 20-point games ended Thursday as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets 96-84 in their home opener. The Hamilton-raised Canadian guard scored 17 points on 6-of-19 shooting, the first time in 141 games he had failed to reach 20, The Associated Press reported. Sportsnet also reported the end of the streak.

Gilgeous-Alexander, the league’s two-time reigning MVP, missed all seven of his shots in the first half as Oklahoma City trailed by as many as nine points. Two free throws kept him from a scoreless half. The AP said it was only the fourth time in 450 games with the Thunder that he had gone without a field goal in a half.

He scored the first basket of the third quarter, and his three-pointer with 1:44 left made it 93-76. He then asked to come out during a timeout and did not return, finishing with a game-high plus-21, according to the official box score.

Jalen Williams led the Thunder with 21 points, and Chet Holmgren had 12 points, 17 rebounds and four blocks. Alex Caruso hit a three-pointer late in the third quarter as Oklahoma City turned a deficit into a 70-64 lead.

Aaron Gordon scored 20 for Denver, which was playing its first game of the season. Nikola Jokic shot 5 of 19 and finished with 13 points and seven rebounds, and DeMar DeRozan also scored 13. The crowd at Paycom Center was 18,203.

Gilgeous-Alexander broke Wilt Chamberlain’s NBA record for consecutive 20-point games when he reached 127 straight, The Canadian Press reported. He scored 32 in the Thunder’s win over San Antonio on Tuesday.

The Thunder are 2-0 and host the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday. Denver hosts New Orleans on Saturday.

Off the court, Gilgeous-Alexander recently launched the SGA Foundation as a charity in Canada and the United States. In Toronto, the Raptors opened with a 135-92 win over Chicago.

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Sources: The Associated Press; Sportsnet; ESPN box score; The Canadian Press.