The Suns lost 125-114 at the Thunder on Monday night. Yahoo Sports' recap said Devin Booker "went AWOL" and that his disappearance and defensive breakdowns were costly, though Phoenix "showed flashes of improvement." The box score backs up the first part. Booker played 34 minutes and finished with 3 points on 1-of-7 shooting, including 0-for-2 from three. He did add 7 assists and had no turnovers.
Ajay Mitchell scored a career-high 30 points, ESPN reported, and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 26 for what ESPN called an injury-riddled, short-handed Thunder team. Mitchell made 10 of 16 shots and 9 of 10 free throws in 25 minutes, and he was +18. Gilgeous-Alexander shot 11 of 18 in 30 minutes. That is well above his 44.4% field-goal mark through the first three games, when he averaged 35.7 minutes. Neither outlet in our set says who was missing for Oklahoma City.
Sportsnet noted that Isaiah Hartenstein and rookie Aday Mara both had double-doubles. Hartenstein had 15 points and 13 rebounds, six of them offensive, and shot 6 of 7. Mara had 11 points and 11 rebounds in 20 minutes. He had played 12 minutes in his only previous appearance this season. Oklahoma City outrebounded Phoenix 49-38 and outscored the Suns 50-38 in the paint.
The game was effectively decided early. The Thunder won the first quarter 33-27 and the second 34-26, and they led for 98 percent of the game with a largest lead of 22. Phoenix shot 42% overall against Oklahoma City's 51%, although it made 18 of 50 threes to the Thunder's 12 of 32. Jalen Green led the Suns with 20 points, Dillon Brooks scored 19 and Miles Bridges 17. Bridges was -17 in 32 minutes. Phoenix's deficit came from the defensive end, and Booker's quiet night added to it.
The Thunder are 4-0 and top the Northwest Division with a four-game winning streak. Their last three wins came by 11 over Phoenix, 7 over the Clippers and 12 over Denver. The Suns are 1-2 and fourth in the Pacific. Monday followed a 131-122 win over Golden State on Saturday and a 124-83 loss at Portland on Oct. 21. Their season so far has swung between those results.
1-24th in PacificStreak L1
Oklahoma City plays at Dallas on Wednesday. Phoenix returns home to face Denver on Friday, Oct. 30.
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