A few days ago, the Oklahoma City Thunder appeared to be a young team navigating their first playoff series together.
However, by Wednesday night, they resembled seasoned playoff veterans.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 33 points as the top-seeded Thunder defeated the New Orleans Pelicans 124-92, taking a commanding 2-0 lead in their first-round Western Conference playoff series.
Gilgeous-Alexander emphasized the team's unwavering focus, avoiding distractions such as other high-seeded teams struggling at home.
"I think it just goes back to us prioritizing winning," he said. "And all those things are distractions that get in the way of winning. Every night, all 15 of us go to bed and want to win the next game the next day. And we do everything we can to do so."
Chet Holmgren scored 26 points with seven rebounds, and Jalen Williams added 21 points for the Thunder, who shot 59% from the field and made 14 of 29 3-pointers.
Jonas Valanciunas scored 19 points, while Herb Jones and Brandon Ingram each added 18 for the Pelicans.
In Game 1, Valanciunas had 20 rebounds, including nine offensive, as the Pelicans outrebounded the Thunder 52-44. However, on Wednesday, Oklahoma City outrebounded New Orleans 37-35 and limited the Pelicans to eight offensive boards.
The Pelicans struggled on offense without top scorer Zion Williamson, who remained out with a strained left hamstring. Ingram, New Orleans' No. 2 scorer in the regular season, attempted just 10 shots in Game 2 as Oklahoma City's Lu Dort harassed him throughout the night. Ingram made only five of 17 field goals in Game 1.
The Thunder also capitalized on New Orleans' mistakes, scoring 22 points off the Pelicans' 18 turnovers.
Game 3 is scheduled for Saturday in New Orleans.
"Now, the challenge is to continue to grow, learn, and improve with the series because the Pelicans are going to improve," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. "They're a good team that's going home and they're well-coached. They're going to get better. So, we have to continue to get better."
The pace of Wednesday's game was significantly faster than Sunday's matchup, which Oklahoma City won 94-92. The Thunder, who averaged 120.1 points in the regular season, appeared much more comfortable with the increased tempo.
"In the first game, I thought both teams were kind of calibrating," Daigneault said. "And tonight, we had much quicker recognition of the way they were guarding us, where we wanted to attack, and we got to those things pretty well."
Valanciunas scored 11 points in the first three minutes, but Holmgren countered with 13 points in seven minutes of first-quarter action.
Gilgeous-Alexander picked up where Holmgren left off. He didn't score for the first nine minutes but then scored seven in the final three minutes of the quarter to help the Thunder take a 35-22 lead. Holmgren's 15 points were the most by a Thunder rookie in any quarter of a playoff game.
"I thought they turned up the pressure offensively," Pelicans coach Willie Green said. They got some early 3s, and that opened the floodgates for them."
Oklahoma City led 63-50 at halftime. Holmgren scored 20 points, and Gilgeous-Alexander added 16 before the break.
The Thunder extended their lead to 92-74 at the end of the third, and Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren went to the bench for good. The Thunder led 120-86 in the fourth quarter.
"It was a tough one for us," Green said. Give them credit; they took care of home court. It was a dominant win for them. So we'll get home, regroup, and get back after it."
