The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Portland Trail Blazers 108-96.
Dennis Schröder’s 3 free throws put the Thunder ahead for good with 1:59 left in the third quarter.
The Trail Blazers got within 82-80 on CJ McCollum’s driving layup with 9:11 to play, but Schröder answered with a 16-foot pull-up jumper, and the Trail Blazers got no closer.
Schröder scored 21 points off the bench. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 21 points (14 in the fourth quarter) and 9 rebounds. Chris Paul added 20 points (9 in the second quarter) and 3 steals, and Nerlens Noel had 13 points and 12 rebounds off the bench. Gilgeous-Alexander scored 14 of his 21 points in the fourth quarter. The Thunder had 3 20-point scorers.
For the Trail Blazers, Damian Lillard had 26 points and 7 assists but shot 8 for 24, and McCollum added 20 points. Hassan Whiteside had 14 points, 10 rebounds and 5 blocks on 6 for 8 shooting.
The Thunder shot 41.2% from the field and 34.4% from 3 to the Trail Blazers’ 36.0% and 27.3%. They outscored the Trail Blazers 42-18 off the bench. Luguentz Dort fouled out.