STORIES FROM THE FIELD
Mitchell 35, Gilgeous-Alexander 28 as a short-handed Thunder shoot 55 per cent
Oklahoma City shot 55 per cent, turned 18 Memphis turnovers into 30 points and extended its winning streak against the Grizzlies to 16 games on Friday night.
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Ajay Mitchell scored a career-high 35 points and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander added 28 as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Memphis Grizzlies 128-97 on Friday night in an NBA Cup group-stage game at FedExForum.
A career night set up before halftime
The career high arrived in the least dramatic way possible. Mitchell took 20 shots for 35 points, found five assists and was on the floor for a plus-33 stretch as Oklahoma City pulled away.
Oklahoma City was converting 69 per cent of its shots through the first half, including nine of 17 from three-point range, and it left the locker room 71-49 in front.
Gilgeous-Alexander contributed 28 on 11-of-22 shooting with four assists, three rebounds and a block after scoring 43 and 42 in Oklahoma City's two wins over Cleveland.
Mitchell had been averaging 21.6 points across the five games before this one, and the Thunder's injury list has handed him a permanent share of the second-creator duties.
Jared McCain supplied 21 points from 9 of 14 and four steals, and the Thunder finished with 16 of 35 from three-point range at 46 per cent.
Eighteen turnovers and no answer
Memphis came in first in the NBA from three-point range and shot 5 of 26 in the first half, ending 10 of 45. The gap between those two facts is roughly the score.
This is now 16 consecutive wins against Memphis, a run that includes the four-game sweep in the first round of the 2025 playoffs.
Oklahoma City forced 18 turnovers and turned them into 30 points, and Memphis recorded no blocks on a night it shot 29 of 88 from the floor.
Ty Jerome led the Grizzlies with 21 points and five of five from the free-throw line; Zach Edey added 14 points on 3 of 7 shooting with eight free throws and four offensive rebounds.
Rookie Cameron Boozer was held to eight points on 2 of 14 shooting although he collected 12 rebounds and four assists, and Quinten Post went scoreless in 15 minutes on 0 of 7.
Records, injuries and what comes next
The Thunder improved to 7-2 and kept their home record intact at 4-0, while the Grizzlies dropped to 6-3 with a 2-3 mark at FedExForum.
Memphis played without Isaiah Stewart and Scotty Pippen Jr., and the absence of a rim protector showed in the 62 points Oklahoma City scored in the paint.
Isaiah Hartenstein scored two points but delivered seven assists and finished plus-31, the highest rating on either side.
Beyond that, Bennett Stirtz added 12 points on 4 of 5 shooting with two steals, and Alex Caruso finished with six rebounds and a plus-23 in 20 minutes off the bench.
Oklahoma City returns home for a Saturday game against Washington; Memphis goes to Toronto on Monday still looking for a first win against this opponent in two seasons.
Editor's take: NBA Cup group games are supposed to be the ones teams play badly. Both coaches will have seen enough Friday to want the December stakes to arrive early.
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