Thunder beat Grizzlies 131-80 in Game 1, 5th-biggest margin of victory in NBA postseason history

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — The Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Memphis Grizzlies 131-80 in Game 1 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series on Sunday, the fifth-biggest margin of victory in NBA postseason history.

The 51-point margin was seven points shy of the record and was the largest Game 1 win in NBA playoff history.

Aaron Wiggins scored 21 points, Jalen Williams scored 20 points and Chet Holmgren had 19 points and 10 rebounds. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, the league’s scoring champion with nearly 33 points per game, scored just 15. The Thunder still shot 50.5% from the field.

“We played to our identity,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “Nothing more, nothing less than that. We were who we were all year ... and it’s going to be the key to our success, just staying true to who we are.”

Gilgeous-Alexander had said several times since Oklahoma City’s loss to Dallas in last season’s Western Conference semifinals that he would be intentional about getting his teammates better prepared for this postseason.

So far, so good.

“I have a great group of guys around me, and I know that,” Gilgeous-Alexander said. “And I’ve known that for a long time. ... They obviously played amazing.”

There have been two 58-point playoff margins in NBA history: Denver beating New Orleans 121-63 in 2009 and the Minneapolis Lakers beating the St. Louis Hawks 133-75 in 1956. The Los Angeles Lakers beat Golden State by 56 (126-70) in 1973 and the Chicago Bulls beat the Milwaukee Bucks by 54 (120-66) in 2015.

Ja Morant scored 17 points for Memphis on just 6-for-17 shooting. Jaren Jackson Jr., who averaged just over 22 points in the regular season, scored four points on 2-for-13 shooting. The Grizzlies shot just 34.4% overall.

The Thunder, who finished the regular-season with a league-best 68-14 record, took control with a 20-0 run that gave them a 55-22 lead in the second quarter. They took a 35-point lead into halftime.

“I just felt like after that, the energy just kind of wasn’t there and we were just trying to talk to ourselves to get back into the game," Morant said.

This was Memphis’ first playoff game under interim coach Tuomas Iisalo. He coached just nine NBA regular-season contests before the play-in games.

“If you’re in a playoff series, it’s a best of seven,” Iisalo said. "It doesn’t matter if you win by one point on a buzzer-beater or you win by 50 points, you get one win. So luckily for us, there’s only one way from this and that’s up. And we will analyze it and learn from it. And then we will fix those things that hurt us.”

Game 2 is Tuesday, and Thunder coach Mark Daigneault expects a closer game.

“They played 36 hours ago and had an emotional game, had to turn around and play at noon today, which is a really tough turnaround,” Daigneault said. "So they’re going to be better Tuesday. So I thought we did a good job. But I don’t think we can expect that from them (again). You know they’re going to play a lot better than that.”

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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, left, signs autographs for fans before Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series against the Memphis Grizzles, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Memphis Grizzlies guard Ja Morant, front, drives past Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort, upper left, as Grizzlies center Zach Edey (14) screens during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) looks to shoot over Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr. (13) during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) looks to shoot between Memphis Grizzlies guard Desmond Bane (22) and center Zach Edey (14) during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) reacts after a dunk during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series against the Memphis Grizzlies, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr., left, drives against Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams, right, during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) dunks as Memphis Grizzlies forward Jaren Jackson Jr., right, looks on during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) looks to shoot over Memphis Grizzlies center Zach Edey (14) as Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein (55) looks on during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein, left, and forward Jalen Williams (8) react after a dunk by Williams during the first half in Game 1 of an NBA first-round playoff series against the Memphis Grizzles, Sunday, April 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

BANGKOK (AP) — A construction magnate and more than a dozen other people surrendered to police Friday on criminal negligence charges for the collapse of a Bangkok high-rise during a March 28 earthquake.

Premchai Karnasuta, the president of Italian-Thai Development Co, the main Thai contractor for the building project, as well as designers and engineers were among 17 charged with the felony of professional negligence causing death, Bangkok deputy police chief Noppasin Poonsawat said.

The accused have publicly denied wrongdoing.

Ninety-two people were confirmed dead in the rubble of the building that had been under construction and a small number of other people remain unaccounted for. The building, which was to become a new State Audit Office, was the only one in Thailand to collapse in the earthquake that was centered in neighboring Myanmar.

Noppasin said at a news conference that evidence and testimony from experts suggested the building plan did not meet standards and codes. The Bangkok Post newspaper said police had also determined the project showed "structural flaws in the core lift shaft and substandard concrete and steel.”

Thai media have reported allegations of wrongdoing in the project almost every day since the building’s collapse, many of them involving irregular documentation for the project. Their reports have highlighted the role of Italian-Thai’s Chinese joint venture partner, the China Railway No. 10 company, which is involved in projects around the world.

A Criminal Court issued arrest warrants for the 17 on Thursday. Noppasin said 15 turned themselves in at a police station in the morning and the remaining two were expected to do so later Friday.

Fifteen appeared at the police station Friday morning and two others were expected later in the day.

FILE- Rescuers search for victims at the site of a high-rise building under construction that collapsed after a strong earthquake in Bangkok, Thailand, early Saturday, March 29, 2025. (AP Photo/Wason Wanichakorn, File)