The Oklahoma City Thunder are known to have an impressive roster with several future All-Stars and a variety of talented role players. On most nights they can easily outscore their opponents.

But with a win Friday night over the Miami Heat — which increased their season record to 22-5 — they proved their mettle.

By defeating the Mavericks and Rockets, the team secured its ticket to the coveted NBA Cup Finals, a game only two teams in the league won. While OKC and the Bucks competed, most other teams had already been on a break for days. Even worse, the West team suffered a stunning loss and had to face Florida, who only had one day off.

The Thunder went head-to-head with the Orlando Magic on Thursday night and couldn’t quite pull away in the crucial moments of the game. While it cruised to victory in Orlando, all signs pointed to Friday’s clash with Miami being doomed.

Instead, Oklahoma City took on Miami from the start, showed an energetic first quarter and even responded confidently to a setback late in the third quarter. Ultimately, Jalen Williams’ 33 points, six rebounds and four assists helped the Thunder cruise past the Heat 104-97.

Since it was the team’s third game in four days, the win could go down as one of the toughest of the season for the young Thunder.

The Thunder now have the absolute second-best record in the league and are a full game ahead of the Boston Celtics, with only the Cavaliers ahead.

They next face the Washington Wizards on Monday, December 23rd at 7 p.m. in what should be an easier contest

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