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A day after being crowned NBA MVP, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Oklahoma City Thunder to a 118-103 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves to open up a 2-0 series lead in the Western Conference Finals. Gilgeous-Alexander was presented with the Michael Jorden Trophy ahead of Game 2 on Thursday, before putting up 38 points – tying his career playoff high – eight assists and three steals to put the Thunder in the driving seat in this series. The 26-year-old has now scored at least 30 points in five straight playoff games. “It felt really good,” Gilgeous-Alexander said of putting in that performance after receiving the award. “I feel like my emotions were so high that I was a little bit tired out there, especially at the start. I was a little too juiced up. “A special moment. I’m happy we won so I can really enjoy the last couple of days and soak it all up. That really helps. Shout out to the team. We played well again tonight and head to Minnesota up 2-0.” “Early, I just wanted to lean on my teammates,” he added. “I thought about coming out and forcing the first couple of shots, but I was like: ‘Nah, that’s probably not the way to go. I wanted to just let the game come to me, lean on my teammates, play through them, play off them.” Thursday’s win again showcased the depth OKC boasts behind Gilgeous-Alexander, with Jalen Williams continuing his rapid rise to stardom with 26 points, 10 rebounds and five assists. Chet Holmgren had one of his best games of this postseason, adding 22 points and four rebounds. The game was a relatively close affair until the Thunder – as they did in Game 1 – used a third-quarter blitz to blow the T-Wolves away. This time it was a 14-2 run that helped Oklahoma City take complete control, eventually pushing the lead to as much as 24. The Timberwolves closed the gap to 10 in the fourth, but the Thunder kept them quite comfortably at arm’s length. Anthony Edwards doubled his shot attempts for the Timberwolves after saying he needed to shoot more following Game 1, posting 32 points, nine rebounds and six assists. Jaden McDaniels added 22 points for the Timberwolves, while Nickeil Alexander-Walker – Gilgeous-Alexander’s cousin – had 17 off the bench. Julius Randle, who was quickly earning the ‘Playoff Julius’ moniker, had his first poor performance of the postseason, scoring just six points on 2-of-11 shooting. “I thought again we didn’t close the half very well,” Minnesota head coach Chris Finch said. “I thought if we close the half better, then we don’t put outselves on such a razor’s edge in the third. “We only had six turnovers at halftime. We had a few more in the third quarter, missed some shots, didn’t finish at the basket and that led to to a bunch of stuff, an early attack mode for them. “Every minute in this series is a chance to find something,” Finch added. “So we’re going to go back home as a good team at home, so we’re going to fight for Game 3. Heads up, look at the tape and get ready for Game 3.” Game 3 is on Saturday in Minnesota, where the Timberwolves have lost just one of their last 10 games and are 4-1 this postseason.
