Isaiah Hartenstein recorded the first triple-double of his career, Isaiah Joe scored 22 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder cruised past the Orlando Magic 128-92 on Tuesday night.
Hartenstein finished with 12 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists in just 23 minutes, becoming the 10th player in franchise history to post a triple-double for the Thunder. Oklahoma City was in control from the opening tip and never looked back, rolling to its 40th win of the season to become the first team in the NBA to reach that mark.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 points and handed out nine assists, extending his streak of games with at least 20 points to 121. Lu Dort added 18 points, and first-time All-Star Chet Holmgren chipped in 16 points and 10 rebounds as the defending champions overwhelmed Orlando despite missing Jalen Williams for an eighth straight game because of a hamstring injury and Ajay Mitchell for a sixth consecutive contest with an abdominal strain.
Oklahoma City set the tone early on its fourth annual HBCU Night, feeding off an energized home crowd. Joe buried a 3-pointer at the first-quarter buzzer to cap a dominant opening period and give the Thunder a 39-14 lead, matching the fewest points allowed by Oklahoma City in any quarter this season. Joe followed that with a highlight left-handed dunk over Paolo Banchero in the second quarter, converting the ensuing free throw to push the lead to 56-24.
The Thunder took a 68-41 advantage into halftime and continued to build separation in the second half. Gilgeous-Alexander, who began the third quarter with 12 points, reached the 20-point mark on a free throw with 2:14 left in the fourth, keeping his historic scoring streak intact and moving him within five games of Wilt Chamberlain’s NBA record.
Jalen Suggs led the Magic with 20 points, while Banchero scored 17 on 6-of-17 shooting. Orlando again played without leading scorer Franz Wagner, who missed his fifth straight game with a high left ankle sprain.
Up next:
The Magic will host Brooklyn on Thursday night, while the Thunder head to San Antonio on Wednesday.
