LOS ANGELES : Oklahoma City Thunder outscored the Los Angeles Lakers 74-49 in the second half to secure a dominant 131-108 victory in Game 3 of their Western Conference second-round playoff series on Saturday and take a commanding 3-0 lead.
Ajay Mitchell scored 24 points, including 18 after halftime, and added 10 assists as the defending NBA champions improved to 7-0 in the postseason.
“The confidence I got from my teammates and our coaching staff has been amazing from Day 1,” Mitchell said. “That’s the key.”
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 23 points and nine assists for Oklahoma City, while Chet Holmgren added 18 points and nine rebounds. Cason Wallace contributed 16 points off the bench.
The Thunder trailed 59-57 at halftime before taking control in the third quarter, where they turned a 63-63 tie into a double-digit lead with a decisive 15-2 run sparked by consecutive dunks from Isaiah Hartenstein and Holmgren.
“We just need to do the same thing we did the first three games,” Gilgeous-Alexander said when asked about the possibility of completing a series sweep in Monday’s Game 4.
Rui Hachimura led the Lakers with 21 points and five three-pointers, while LeBron James added 19 points, eight assists and six rebounds. Austin Reaves scored 17 points and dished out nine assists.
The Lakers again played without NBA scoring champion Luka Doncic, who remained sidelined with a hamstring injury. Oklahoma City were also without Jalen Williams because of a hamstring problem.
“They are pretty good from top to bottom and they don’t take their foot off the gas,” James said after the Lakers fell to 0-7 against Oklahoma City this season.
The Thunder shot 56.4% from the field and made 17 three-pointers, while forcing 17 Lakers turnovers that led to 30 points.
Los Angeles briefly cut the deficit to five late in the third quarter, but Isaiah Joe buried two late three-pointers to give Oklahoma City a 90-79 lead entering the final period.
Mitchell then scored nine points during a decisive fourth-quarter run as the Thunder stretched the margin beyond 20 points. Alex Caruso punctuated the surge with a powerful dunk.
“He’s a gamer,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of Mitchell. “Never shaken by the moment.”
Lakers coach JJ Redick praised Oklahoma City despite Gilgeous-Alexander shooting just 7-for-20 from the field.
“The MVP is 7 of 20 tonight and they’ve kicked our ass three straight games,” Redick said. “They are an incredible basketball team.”
