Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and the Thunder beat the rested Timberwolves 114-88 in Game 1 of West finals

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 of his 31 points in the second half, and the top-seeded Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-88 on Tuesday night in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals.

Gilgeous-Alexander made 8 of 14 field goals in the second half after a rough start.

“I didn’t particularly change my mindset, honestly,” he said, “I just tried to continue to be aggressive, trust my work.”

Julius Randle scored 28 points for sixth-seeded Minnesota, but just eight in the second half.

Anthony Edwards, who had been averaging 26.5 points per game in the playoffs, was held to 18 points on 5-of-13 shooting.

“I definitely got to shoot more. I took 13 (expletive) shots, but I’ll say probably just get off the ball a little more,” Edwards said. “Play without the ball. I think that would be the answer, because playing on the ball, they’re just going to double and sit in the gaps all day. So I’ve got to go watch some film and take it apart and figure it out.”

Edwards said the Thunder packed the paint, and he expects the Timberwolves to take advantage of that tactic going forward. Game 2 is Thursday in Oklahoma City.

“They bank on us not making shots, I guess, because every time I go to the rim it’s like four people," he said. “So yeah, I guess they just be clogging the paint. They put like five, four bodies in the paint, make you kick it out. So keep making the right play.”

Oklahoma City was just two days removed from eliminating Denver in Game 7 of the conference semifinals. Minnesota hadn’t played in a week.

Minnesota led 48-44 at halftime as Randle scored 20 points and made 5 of 6 3-pointers. Gilgeous-Alexander was held to 11 points on 2-of-13 shooting before the break.

“For us to play as poorly as we did offensively in the first half and be down four was a major victory for us at halftime," Thunder coach Mark Daigneault said.

The Thunder went on a 10-0 run in the third quarter to take a 66-60 lead. A short time later, Kenrich Williams, a rarely-used sub this postseason, hit a midrange jumper and a 3-pointer on consecutive possessions to put the Thunder up 71-62. Oklahoma City outscored Minnesota 32-18 in the third quarter to take a 76-66 advantage into the fourth.

A spinning dunk by Holmgren in traffic put Oklahoma City ahead 86-75 and drew a roar from the crowd. Gilgeous-Alexander threw up a prayer as he was being fouled while falling to the floor. The ball rolled in, and he made the free throw to make it 91-77 with seven minutes remaining.

“It’s Game 1," Minnesota coach Chris Finch said. “They won at home. Congrats to them. They played really well. There’s another game in two days.”

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Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, left, meets with his wife, Hailey Summers, and their son Ares Alexander following Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series against the Minnesota Timberwolves Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander dribbles the ball up court against Minnesota Timberwolves during the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) works the floor against Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren during the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle (30) competes for a rebound against Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2), guard Isaiah Joe (11) and forward Jalen Williams (8) during the first half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo, left, applies pressure on Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander during the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Nickeil Alexander-Walker (9) stands next to his cousin Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander during the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) drives against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Donte DiVincenzo (0) during the second half of Game 1 of an NBA basketball Western Conference Finals playoff series Tuesday, May 20, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Nate Billings)

EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Harrison Smith's 14th year as a steadying presence and energizing force in the secondary for the Minnesota Vikings has hardly been smooth.

The undisclosed health-related matter that sidelined him during training camp was a major setback to his conditioning, putting him in catch-up mode for most of the first half of the season. The Vikings defense was more vulnerable than usual over those early games, too.

Then with the offense struggling through the developmental process with quarterback J.J. McCarthy, the Vikings stumbled through November to drop to 4-8 and precipitate their elimination from playoff contention.

But lately?

“I’ve been playing football a long time,” Smith said after Minnesota's victory over the Detroit Lions on Christmas Day, “and I have not had fun like that in my whole career.”

Smith received the NFC Defensive Player of the Week award for that performance in his 206th regular-season game, after logging three passes defensed, two tackles for loss, one sack and one interception. He last won that award in 2018.

With career totals of 21½ sacks and 39 interceptions, Smith is just the second player in NFL history to hit those marks, behind Pro Football Hall of Fame member Ronde Barber, who had 28 sacks and 47 interceptions. Smith is also one of four players all time, with Barber, Brian Dawkins and Charles Woodson, to total at least 50 tackles for loss, 100 passes defensed and 200 regular-season games played. Smith (202) also trails only Jim Marshall (270) and Mick Tingelhoff (240) on the team’s all-time list for career starts.

Following the interception against the Lions, Smith was feted on the sideline in a circle of his teammates. He was the recipient of multiple ovations from the U.S. Bank Stadium crowd. Afterward, as Smith tried to sum up what that experience meant to him, his voice cracked several times before he had to pause to compose himself.

“The fans here have never experienced a Super Bowl. They always show up, and for them to keep showing up ... it just shows how much they love the team, how much they love everything that goes into it," Smith said. “We’re out of the playoffs, and everybody shows up in white. They do their part, and one of these days they’ll get it.”

The scene sure felt like a farewell. But so did Smith's emotional postgame remarks after the Vikings were ousted from the playoffs last season.

Could he envision himself returning for a 15th year?

“I can’t speak on that right now. I’m a very much in-the-moment type of guy,” Smith said.

Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell, who has forged a close relationship with the six-time Pro Bowl safety, has made no secret of his desire to keep Smith in place.

Defensive coordinator Brian Flores has turned over some of the play-calling and decision-making to Smith on the field before and after the snap, and an increased emphasis on blitzing in recent weeks has paid plenty of dividends.

"He has an unbelievable feel of the system. He has an unbelievable feel of what ‘Flo’ and the defensive staff really want to do, and he’s out there playing a game within the game,” O’Connell said. “It’s been spectacular to watch. It’s been awesome from my perspective to watch what he’s able to do at this point in his career mentally, and then physically he’s making a lot of plays as well.”

The uncertainty about next season for the defense stretches beyond Smith, with other expensive veterans facing the possibility of being released for cost savings with the Vikings projected to be well over the salary cap approaching the 2026 league year.

Then there's Flores, whose contract will soon expire, making him a free agent. Though his landmark discrimination lawsuit against the NFL that’s still in the court system nearly four years later continues to loom over any interviews he gets for head coach openings, there's also an opening for another club to try to lure him away with a break-the-bank offer for a lateral move.

O'Connell said this week that he doesn't anticipate such a scenario playing out and hopes to have him as long as he can before he's hired again as a head coach.

“I love Minnesota. I love this team. I love working for and with K.O.," said Flores, who was head coach of the Miami Dolphins from 2019-21 and joined the Vikings in 2023. "This place has shown me a lot of love, and I show them right back, and so I don’t know how much more there is to it. From a football standpoint, it fits. There’s always a, let’s call it, business part of this. But the football all lines up. We’ll just see where it all goes.”

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

Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff (16) throws under pressure from Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith (22) during the second half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)

Minnesota Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores stands on the sideline before an NFL football game against the Detroit Lions, Thursday, Dec. 25, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Bruce Kluckhohn)