Thunder come away with dramatic, controversial Game 2 win over Spurs

Steven J. Gaither

Thunder come away with dramatic, controversial Game 2 win over Spurs image

The Spurs lost just once at home during the regular season. They've equaled that total in the playoffs.

The Thunder came up with a 98-97 win in San Antonio in Monday night's Game 2 to tie their Western Conference semifinal series at one game apiece.

MORE: Worst playoff chokes, ranked

The Spurs had a chance to win in the final seconds, but Patty Mills missed a potential game-winner when he air-balled his 3-point attempt. Mills' shot came after the Spurs stole an inbounds pass, during which Thunder forward Dion Waiters made physical contact with Spurs guard Manu Ginobili while inbounding the ball. But officials failed to blow their whistle. 

Regardless, Game 2 was a complete turnaround from Game 1 for Oklahoma City. 

“Been there before. It’s one game," Westbrook said of his team's 32-point loss on Saturday. "Regardless of how many you lose by, they’re just up 1-0.”

DEVENEY: Thompson delivers playoff payoff for Cavs

In the Eastern Conference, the top-seeded Cavaliers came away with a 104-93 win over the Hawks to take a 1-0 lead in their second-round series. 

LeBron James (28 points) and Kyrie Irving (21 points) led the way for the Cavs. 

Stud of the Night

LaMarcus Aldridge played out of his ever-loving mind Monday, scoring 41 points on 15-for-21 shooting in the loss. He is 33 for 44 from the field through two games in the series.

Dud of the Night

The Hawks' starting backcourt of Kyle Korver and Jeff Teague didn’t perform up to snuff. Teague was held to just eight points on 2-for-9 shooting and Korver only attempted one shot in over 36 minutes, finishing with three points.

Tweet of the Night

The Cavs' victory helped push LeBron James’ playoff win total to 120, one more than Michael Jordan had in his postseason career. It took him four more games, however, which is how many more championships Jordan has than James. Just thought we’d point that out.

Looking ahead

Heat at Raptors, Game 1, 8 p.m. ET, TNT: Both teams are coming off Game 7s on Sunday, so it’ll be interesting to see who has more energy if the game is close in the fourth quarter.

Trail Blazers at Warriors, Game 2, 10:30 p.m. ET (Warriors lead 1-0): Stephen Curry won’t be in uniform, but that was the case Sunday and it didn't help the Trail Blazers too much.

Steven J. Gaither