Thunder snap loss streak with 121-118 win over Hornets

As Brandon Miller’s last-second 3-pointer bounced off the rim, OKC breathed a sigh of relief. The final buzzer sounded and it tasted victory for the first time in a week. A flavor that’s been badly craved.

The short-handed Oklahoma City Thunder collected a much-needed 121-118 win over the Charlotte Hornets. The road win snapped a season-high three-game loss streak amid Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s and Jalen Williams’ absences. It also wrapped up a season-high five-game road trip.

“These games this week were really valuable for us,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said on the win. “I think there’s individual players that gained a lot of confidence from this. From the experience of more minutes and kinda bigger roles. When we insert Shai and Jalen back in, hopefully they can maintain that confidence.”

As the Thunder’s offense stagnated these last couple of contests without their top two scorers, they looked crisper out of the gates. OKC got off to a 10-2 start and ended the first quarter with a 31-29 lead.

After being tied at 33 apiece in the opening minutes of the second frame, the Thunder went on a 20-7 run to build a 13-point lead with over five minutes left in the first half. OKC scored 36 points in the second frame and entered halftime with a 65-55 advantage.

The Thunder grew their lead to 14 points in the opening minutes of the third frame and it felt like they were on their way to cruising for a stress-free win. Instead, a 13-4 run by the Hornets cut OKC’s lead to five points with a little under four minutes left in the quarter.

After the Thunder ballooned their lead back to 86-76 with three minutes left, Charlotte closed the quarter with nine straight points. Suddenly, OKC only had a slight 86-85 lead to enter the final frame.

Both teams exchanged baskets throughout the fourth quarter as neither squad created serious distance on the scoreboard. The Thunder finally created breathing room with a Lu Dort 3-pointer and Aaron Wiggins’ drive to the basket. Both scores gave OKC a 105-98 lead with less than seven minutes left.

The Hornets stung back with eight straight points to retake the lead at 106-105 with less than five minutes left in the contest. Charlotte continued its momentum as Grant Williams nailed a 3-pointer and scored in the post to grow its lead to 111-107 with 3:29 left in regulation.

Wiggins nailed a right-wing 3-pointer to put OKC back within one point with a little over three minutes left. After Williams converted a…