The Oklahoma City Thunder are within reach of clinching the NBA’s Western Conference top spot for the third season running after thrashing the Los Angeles Lakers for the second time in six days.
A 123-87 victory on Tuesday means the Thunder are one win – or one San Antonio Spurs loss – from ensuring they finish top.
The Lakers had lost 139-96 to the defending NBA champions on Thursday – one of their heaviest defeats in their history.
This time, despite being without Luka Doncic, Austin Reaves and LeBron James, they stayed with the Thunder into the second quarter before their opponents scored 23 points – conceding just five – in the final seven minutes and 16 seconds of the half to take control.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 25 points in 28 minutes – extending to 139 his record for most consecutive games with 20 or more points – as his side secured their sixth consecutive win and their 18th in 19 games.
The defeat for the Lakers was their third in a row – they fall behind the Denver Nuggets in the chase for third spot in the Conference.
Rui Hachimura led the home side with 15 points with no other Lakers player scoring more than 11.
Elsewhere, the Phoenix Suns missed out on an automatic play-off spot after losing 119-105 to the Houston Rockets.
Kevin Durant who was traded from Phoenix to Houston last year, scored 24 points against his former team with sections of the Suns home crowd subjecting him to boos throughout the game.
The defeat for the Suns means the Minnesota Timberwolves have secured the final play-off spot in the Conference after their comprehensive 124-104 success over the struggling Indiana Pacers.
The Boston Celtics closed in on securing second seed in the Eastern Conference after holding off the in-form Charlotte Hornets 113-102 while the Toronto Raptors kept their automatic play-off hopes on track with a 121-95 win over the Miami Heat, who will now be involved in next week’s play-in tournament, along with the Suns.
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