Thunder fans poured into Chesapeake Energy Arena on Friday night anticipating a playoff dogfight. What they got was a marathon of a game between division rivals.
The Thunder and Denver Nuggets did battle for 2 hours and 36 minutes of real time on Friday in Oklahoma City, and needed an overtime period to decide the final result. Despite a fourth quarter and overtime filled with relentless energy and effort, and a team-record 20 made three-pointers, the Thunder fell short when it came to closing time, and lost its third game in four tries, 126-125.
“Anytime you play against a team like Denver it’s always going to be that type of game,” said forward Carmelo Anthony, who scored 23 points on 5-of-10 three-point shooting.