LAS VEGAS – Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 of his 32 points in the second half and the Oklahoma City Thunder pulled away late Saturday night, defeating the Houston Rockets 111-96 and advancing to the NBA Cup Championship.

The Thunder are on a five-game winning streak and advance to Tuesday night’s finale against the Bucks. Milwaukee defeated the Atlanta Hawks 110-102 in the Eastern Conference semifinals. The title game does not count in the league standings.

Saturday night’s semifinal pitted two of the league’s top three defenses against each other, and both offenses struggled in the first half. However, the Thunder, led by Gilgeous-Alexander, found their rhythm in the second frame and scored 70 points to pull away from a 42-41 halftime deficit.

Isaiah Hartenstein added 21 points for the Thunder, Jalen Williams scored 20 and Luguentz Dort finished the game with 19 points and nine rebounds.

Amen Thompson led Houston with 19 points, one of six Rockets in double figures, and Alperen Sengun had 13 points and 11 rebounds.

The Rockets and Thunder have two of the three best records in the Western Conference, making Saturday’s second semifinal a possible playoff preview.

The Associated Press contributed to this story.