Gilgeous-Alexander scores 46 points as Thunder halt rare skid with OT win over Jazz

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 46 points and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Utah Jazz 129-125 in overtime Wednesday night to snap a two-game losing skid.

Gilgeous-Alexander calmly made a shot from near the free-throw line at the regulation buzzer to force overtime, then scored nine points in the extra period. The reigning MVP increased his streak of games with at least 20 points to 109, the second-longest run in NBA history.

Chet Holmgren had 23 points and 12 rebounds, Jalen Williams scored 17 points and Ajay Mitchell added 16 for defending champion Oklahoma City.

The Thunder had dropped six of their previous 12 after starting the season 24-1. The most significant recent blemish was a 124-97 loss to struggling Charlotte on Tuesday for their second straight loss. The Thunder haven't lost three consecutive regular-season games since April 2024.

Lauri Markkanen had 29 points and 13 rebounds for Utah. Keyonte George added 25 points and 11 assists and Jusuf Nurkic chipped in 15 points and 15 rebounds as the Jazz lost their fifth straight.

Oklahoma City led by 20 in the second quarter, but that margin was trimmed to 58-53 by halftime. Utah started off hot in the second half, and a layup by Nurkic gave the Jazz a 70-69 lead.

Oklahoma City trailed by eight with just over five minutes remaining before chipping away.

A reverse putback by Markkanen with three seconds left in regulation, at the end of the 24-second shot clock, put the Jazz up 114-112. The shot was reviewed and deemed good before Gilgeous-Alexander's clutch shot kept the game going.

Jazz: Host Dallas on Thursday night.

Thunder: At Memphis on Friday night.

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

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Aaron Wiggins (21) pass the ball against the Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wenesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Gerald Leong)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard/forward Jalen Williams (8) drives the ball against the Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Gerald Leong)

Oklahoma City Thunder center/forward Chet Holmgren (7) drives against Utah Jazz center Jusuf Nurkić (30) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Gerald Leong)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) looks to shoot against Utah Jazz guard Keyonte George (3) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Gerald Leong)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (2) shoots against Utah Jazz during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Jan. 7, 2025, in Oklahoma City. (AP Photo/Gerald Leong)

GUATIRE, Venezuela (AP) — A day after Venezuela ’s government pledged to free a “significant number” of prisoners, a local human rights group said only eight people had been released, or less than 1% of the citizens and foreigners the group says are detained for political reasons.

Family members of the detainees – a mix of political opponents of the country’s ruling party, activists and journalists – anxiously waited outside prisons on Friday with hopes their loved ones might be released. The government hasn’t said who or how many would be granted freedom.

The daughter of a former police officer being held at one of the country’s most notorious prisons learned during a scheduled visit with her father on Friday that neither he nor many of the prisoners there were even aware that former President Nicolás Maduro had been arrested last weekend by U.S. military forces to face federal charges of drug-trafficking in New York.

President Donald Trump hailed the Venezuelan government's pledge to release prisoners, in what a top official described as a gesture to “seek peace.” And images of former prisoners being reunited with their families were also celebrated by leaders of Venezuela's opposition movement, who remain sidelined in a country now being led by Maduro's former loyalists.

Still, Venezuela has released prisoners before in what observers have called a political negotiation tactic. It remains unclear whether this latest wave of amnesty represents a government in transition under pressure from the United States or merely a symbolic overture to placate Trump, who said he asked for the releases.

Foro Penal, an advocacy group for prisoners based in Caracas, said that by Friday morning it had only documented the release of 8 of the 863 people it says are detained in Venezuela "for political reasons.”

Among those were high-profile opposition leaders, activists and journalists – both Venezuelan and foreign citizens.

Former opposition presidential candidate Edmundo Gonzaléz said in a video message on social media that “it deeply gladdens me to see the embrace of those who have already been able to reunite.” He told those who continued to wait to stay strong.

Around 60 family members and loved ones gathered outside of the Rodeo prison just outside of Venezuela’s capital on Friday and said they weren't leaving until they got more news. Many had waited for an entire day with the hopes that their family members would be freed.

Shakira Ibarreto, 33, was among those to arrive to the prison the night before to await the release of her father Miguel Ibarreto. He is a former police office who has spent years in and out of detention on the accusation that he was planning to overthrow the government, a charge widely leveled at critics and activists upon detention.

Ibarreto entered the prison in the early morning in a scheduled visit with her father, and said she quickly realized that her father knew nothing about the seismic shifts underway in the South American nation.

She explained to him that Maduro has been deposed in an American military operation and taken to New York to face justice, and that a new government of his allies had taken hold, and has released a number of prisoners.

“At first, I was scared to tell him because I wasn't sure what they could do to me. Then I summoned up the bravery,” Ibarreto told The Associated Press. “I told him everything, every single thing that was happening in Venezuela right now.”

Her father listened to her in shock. He said guards had turned off the state TV usually running in a loop in the prison.

Ibarreto said she watched her father tell other prisoners the news and heard them erupt in applause and screams of excitement. Other visiting family members said that people inside the prison were crying tears of joy.

Still, there was no sign that Ibarreto and other imprisoned opposition and civil society members were going to be released. It still remained unclear under what conditions the opposition members freed on Thursday were released, and if they would be blocked from speaking publicly.

Human rights groups said the release of eight people was not nearly enough.

“Freedom cannot remain in statements: it must materialize in verifiable facts,” the Venezuelan organization Justice, Encounter, and Forgiveness posted on X.

Others like Ibarreto were still holding out hope on Friday.

“I’m not sad, I feel emotional. Because I have hope. We didn’t feel this hope and this feeling a week ago. Two weeks ago," Ibarreto said. "We’ve been at this for years."

——

Janetsky reported from Mexico City. Associated Press photojournalist Matias Delacroix contributed to this report.

Jacklin Ibarreto, whose father Miguel Ibarreto is detained, waits outside the Rodeo I prison in Guatire, Venezuela, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said the government would release Venezuelan and foreign prisoners. (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)

El Helicoide, the headquarters of Venezuela's intelligence service and detention center, stands in Caracas, Venezuela, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said the government would release Venezuelan and foreign prisoners. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)

Shakira Ibarreto leaves the Rodeo I prison after visiting her father, Miguel Ibarreto, in Guatire, Venezuela, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026, after National Assembly President Jorge Rodriguez said the government would release Venezuelan and foreign prisoners (AP Photo/Matias Delacroix)