OKC destroyed Minnesota in Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals. The final score: 114-88. In a strange turn of events, the Wolves launched a playoff-record 51 shots from three-point range, making just under a third of their attempts.
What began as a tight game turned into a mess after halftime. While OKC's offense lit up the scoreboard with 70 points, Minnesota went cold, managing only 40 points in the second half.
In the first half, Julius Randle was on fire, knocking down five threes out of six shots. But his hot shooting didn't rub off on his teammates. The rest of the team kept missing shots, hitting just 22.2% of their 45 three-point attempts.
Now trailing 1-0, Minnesota needs to bounce back before Thursday's Game 2. The defeat adds to OKC's impressive record in this rivalry - they've now won 92 of 140 meetings against the Wolves.
Before this beating, everything pointed to a closer series. The teams had split their four games during the regular season.
Minnesota had actually been playing better lately, winning three of their last five games against OKC. That advantage vanished completely in this series opener as the Thunder's defense shut down everything the Wolves tried.
Since moving from Seattle in 2008, OKC has owned Minnesota. They've beaten the Wolves by 107 points on average across all games.
The Wolves get another chance in Game 2. Their success against OKC in the regular season shows they can turn things around - if they can start making their shots.
