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Sweet 16 as Thunder demolish Suns to reach NBA Cup semis / Photo: © GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA/AFP
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Sweet 16 as Thunder demolish Suns to reach NBA Cup semis
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 28 points as the Oklahoma City Thunder bagged a 16th consecutive victory to romp into the NBA Cup semi-finals with a 138-89 rout of the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday.
The reigning NBA champions -- who improved to 24-1 to equal the best 25-game start to a season in league history -- dominated from start to finish to book their place in the final four in Las Vegas.
The Suns will face either the Los Angeles Lakers or San Antonio Spurs on Saturday for a place in next week's final.
On Wednesday's evidence, few would bet against Oklahoma City completing an NBA Finals-NBA Cup double after a superb performance before their home crowd at the Paycom Center.
"We hold ourselves to a high standard, and most importantly it's about us getting better," Gilgeous-Alexander said after an offensive display that included 22 Thunder three-pointers.
"We just moved the ball really well. Played together, very decisive on offense and tried to play through our comfort zone and when we do that we're a pretty good offense," added Alexander, who has now scored 20 points or more in 96 consecutive games.
Oklahoma City are aiming to go one better than last season, when they reached the NBA Cup final only to be upset by Milwaukee.
"We should be in a good position -- we've got a lot better since last year, we'll see how it goes," Alexander said.
The Thunder blowout was all but assured after a devastating 38-point first quarter, which they followed with 36 points in the second to reach half-time with a commanding 74-48 lead.
The carnage continued after halftime, with Oklahoma City leading by as many as 53 points in a relentless offensive onslaught.
Gilgeous-Alexander received offensive support from Chet Holmgren, whose 24 points included a perfect 4-of-4 from three-point range, with eight rebounds and three blocks.
Holmgren was also at the center of a third-quarter flashpoint, with frustrated Suns point guard Grayson Allen getting ejected for a rough bodycheck on the towering Thunder center.
Oklahoma City's start to the season equals the 24-1 record compiled by the Golden State Warriors at the start of the 2015-2016 campaign, when the club went on to finish a history-making 73-9 regular season record.
H. de Araujo--JDB
