OKLAHOMA CITY – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 39 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder defeated the Dallas Mavericks 118-104 in the NBA Cup quarterfinals on Tuesday night.

Jalen Williams scored 18 points and Isaiah Hartenstein added 10 points and 13 rebounds for the Thunder, who will play Wednesday’s Golden State-Houston winner in the semifinals on Saturday in Las Vegas.

Oklahoma City’s largest lead was 20 points in a rematch of last season’s Western Conference semifinal series, which Dallas won 4-2.

The Thunder and their elite perimeter defenders held Luka Doncic to 16 points on 5-for-15 shooting. Lu Dort led the operation, with Alex Caruso and Cason Wallace among the key helpers.

Naji Marshall and Klay Thompson each scored 19 points and Kyrie Irving added 17 for the Mavericks.

PJ Washington, a thorn in Oklahoma City’s side during the playoffs last season and in Dallas’ win last month, missed the game due to illness.

Oklahoma City led 57-54 at halftime behind 18 points from Gilgeous-Alexander. Doncic scored two points on 1-for-7 shooting at the break.

Gilgeous-Alexander scored 16 points on 7-for-8 shooting in the third quarter to help the Thunder gain control. Isaiah Joe’s deep 3-pointer at the buzzer gave Oklahoma City a 90-73 lead heading into the fourth period.

Takeaways

Mavericks: Dallas made too many mistakes to have a chance. The Thunder scored 36 points off the Mavericks’ 19 turnovers.

Thunder: Oklahoma City signed the 7-foot, 255-pound Hartenstein as a free agent in the offseason to provide bulk and rebounds. It paid off – the Thunder outscored the Mavericks 52-44.

Key moment

Oklahoma City opened the second half with a 13-2 run. Gilgeous-Alexander scored nine points in the period to help the Thunder take a 70-56 lead.

Key statistics

The Mavericks made just 6 of 19 field goals in the third quarter after shooting 50% from the field in the first half.

Next

Mavericks: Host the Los Angeles Clippers on December 19th.

Thunder: Plays Golden State or Houston in the NBA Cup semifinals in Las Vegas on Saturday.

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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba