Thunder open 35-point 1st-half lead over Grizzlies, go on to win by 51 in a stat-filled Game 1

Oklahoma City's playoff run got off to a record-setting start.

The Thunder beat the Memphis Grizzlies 131-80 in Game 1 of their Western Conference playoff series on Sunday, the fifth-biggest victory margin in NBA postseason history and the largest in a Game 1.

“We were amped up,” Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said. “Give the guys a lot of credit for the week of practice that we had. It's a sneaky tough week because it's a lot of days without games and it gets you out of rhythm of games.”

The 51-point margin capped a stat-filled Sunday in OKC. Some highlights:

For a while, it seemed like the Thunder had a chance at the biggest playoff win ever.

There have been two 58-point playoff margins: Denver beating New Orleans 121-63 on April 27, 2009, and the Minneapolis Lakers beating the St. Louis Hawks 133-75 on March 19, 1956.

The Los Angeles Lakers beat Golden State by 56 (126-70) on April 21, 1973 and the Chicago Bulls beat the Milwaukee Bucks by 54 (120-66) on April 30, 2015.

The Thunder led by as many as 56 points, the biggest lead in a playoff game since Denver led New Orleans by 58 points in that 2009 game.

OKC held leads of 127-71 and 129-73. The Grizzlies scored seven of the game's final nine points, which kept Memphis from enduring the biggest playoff loss ever.

The week off for the Thunder didn't slow down the NBA's best team this season — one that won 68 games and set a league record for point differential at 12.9 per game.

The Thunder opened a 35-point lead in the first half. That was the biggest first-half lead of any playoff Game 1 in the league's digital play-by-play era that goes back to 1996-97.

Oklahoma City had 35-point leads twice — 61-26 and 63-28. The Thunder settled for a 68-36 lead at halftime, the biggest halftime lead of any playoff game in franchise history, as well as the biggest halftime deficit ever for the Grizzlies in a playoff game.

Since 1997, there have been only two NBA playoff games where one team led by more than 35 points.

Both were done by the Cleveland Cavaliers when LeBron James played there.

The Cavs led at Boston by 41 points twice (70-29 and 72-31) in the first half of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference finals on May 19, 2017. And the Cavs led Atlanta by 38 points (74-36) in Game 2 of the East semifinals on May 4, 2016.

Go figure: The Thunder won by 51 points on a day where their MVP favorite, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, was “held” to only 15 points.

“I was impressed with how the guys came out and played,” Daigneault said.

This wasn't the most one-sided game in Thunder-Grizzlies history. Not even close.

Memphis beat Oklahoma City 152-79 on Dec. 2, 2021 — the 73-point margin there being the biggest in NBA history.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

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)

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)

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)

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)

PARIS (AP) — A Paris court is to rule on Monday in a case involving 10 people accused of cyberbullying French first lady Brigitte Macron by spreading false online claims about her gender and sexuality, allegations her daughter said damaged her health and family life.

The defendants, eight men and two women aged 41 to 60, are accused of posting “numerous malicious comments” falsely claiming that President Emmanuel Macron ’s wife was born a man and linking the 24-year age gap with her husband to pedophilia. Some of the posts were viewed tens of thousands of times.

Brigitte Macron did not attend the two-day trial in October.

Her daughter, Tiphaine Auzière, testified about what she described as the “deterioration” of her mother’s life since the online harassment intensified. “She cannot ignore the horrible things said about her,” Auzière told the court. She said the impact has extended to the entire family, including Macron’s grandchildren.

Defendant Delphine Jegousse, 51, who is known as Amandine Roy and describes herself as a medium and an author, is considered as having played a major role in spreading the rumor after she released a four-hour video on her YouTube channel in 2021.

The X account of Aurélien Poirson-Atlan, 41, known as Zoé Sagan on social media, was suspended in 2024 after his name was cited in several judicial investigations.

Other defendants include an elected official, a teacher and a computer scientist. Several told the court their comments were intended as humor or satire and said they did not understand why they were being prosecuted. They face up to two years in prison if convicted.

The case follows years of conspiracy theories falsely alleging that Brigitte Macron was born under the name Jean-Michel Trogneux, which is actually the name of her brother. The Macrons have also filed a defamation suit in the United States against conservative influencer Candace Owens.

The Macrons, who have been married since 2007, first met at the high school where he was a student and she was a teacher. Brigitte Macron, 24 years her husband’s senior, was then called Brigitte Auzière, a married mother of three.

Emmanuel Macron, 48, has been France’s president since 2017.

FILE - French President's wife Brigitte Macron arrives ahead of the ceremony outside "La Belle Equipe" bar, Thursday Nov. 13, 2025 in Paris as part of ceremonies marking the 10th anniversary of terrorist attacks. (Ludovic Marin, Pool photo via AP, File)