Faced with Curry's comeback and the desire to rebound from the Golden State Warriors, the away game of the Oklahoma Thunder sparked a storm of youth. They stubbornly equalized the gap in the fourth quarter, trailing 18 points at one point.
With the last 1.6 seconds left in the game, the Thunder was three points behind. 21-year-old center Homgren caught the ball from the corner and then twisted his body to hit a hollow three pointer, dragging the game into extra time. The Warriors, who were still bustling two seconds ago, suddenly fell silent in the center of their home field.
This scene occurred on November 19th Beijing time, during the regular season match between the Warriors and the Thunder at home. The Thunder is a young team that has shown outstanding performance recently. They have members like Alexander from last year, Gideon who won the Best Newcomer award in this summer's men's basketball World Cup, Homgren, the 2022 top pick, and a group of high ranking rookies that have been hoarded for many years... Since the new season, this young team has maintained momentum while becoming more mature in their playing style, currently ranking fourth in the Western Conference.
This season's Warriors are more like a stock that opens high and moves low. The arrival of Paul and his appointment as a substitute ensured the team's efficiency at the current stage, but Curry's injury, Green's suspension, and Thompson and Wiggins' sustained slump have caused them to suffer five consecutive losses in recent times.
In this game, the Warriors welcomed their head coach Curry's comeback from injury, and their attitude of hoping to rebound from the bottom and end a losing streak was evident from the beginning. The entire team showed extremely high efficiency on the offensive end, scoring over 30 points in two consecutive quarters, and successfully suppressing the opponent on the defensive end in the second quarter, leading by 10 points 61-51 into halftime.
In the first half of the third quarter, the Warriors continued to widen the lead to 18 points, but as the team's attacking efficiency declined in the latter half of this quarter, the Thunder seized the opportunity to launch a counterattack, leaving the Warriors with little lead left.
The fourth quarter was a decisive battle between two teams from the beginning. Thunder star Alexander punished the Warriors defense with consecutive mid to long range shots, while center Homgren continued to maintain a hot state, scoring 10 points in a single quarter and hitting a perfect three pointer in the last 1.6 seconds, dragging the game into extra time. The Warriors, whose morale was dampened in extra time, had no chance to recover. In the end, the Thunder lost their sixth consecutive game to the Warriors with a score of 130-123 away from home.
Throughout the game, Alexander scored 40 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks, while Homgren scored 36 points, 10 rebounds, and 5 assists. It is worth mentioning that Homgren has been extremely efficient so far this season, ranking among the "180+shooting percentage" (i.e. shooting above 50%, three-point shooting above 40%, and free throw shooting above 90%, all three of which are indispensable). At the same time, he can also send two or more blocks per game, which gives him a certain advantage in the competition for the best rookie against Spurs rookie Wenban Yama.
