Thunder beat Nuggets 121-111 behind Gilgeous-Alexander's 34 points

DENVER (AP) — Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 34 points and Cason Wallace added a career-best 27, including seven 3-pointers, as the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the Denver Nuggets 121-111 on Sunday night.

Gilgeous-Alexander had 13 assists and the Thunder, who had lost three of four, sank 19 3-pointers. They went 8 of 13 from long range in the third quarter when Oklahoma City expanded a seven-point halftime cushion to 16.

Peyton Watson's 29 points paced the Nuggets, who never led in the first of four games this season between the top two teams in the Western Conference. It was their first meeting since the Thunder beat Denver in Game 7 of the Western Conference semifinals last May on their way to winning the city's first NBA championship.

The Nuggets' pair of All-Stars had a rather quiet night.

Nikola Jokic scored 16 points but took only nine shots in his second game back from a knee injury that sidelined him for 16 games. Jamal Murray, who earned his first All-Star berth in his ninth NBA season Sunday, dished out 12 assists but scored just 12 points on 4-of-16 shooting — including 1 for 8 from 3-point range.

The Thunder led by 14 in the first half and took a 62-55 advantage into the break. The Nuggets pulled to 74-70 in the third quarter before Chet Holmgren, also named an All-Star reserve Sunday, hit a 3 and Wallace sank his sixth and seventh 3-pointers. After a Denver timeout, SGA swished a 3 and so did Aaron Wiggins to cap a 12-0 run, with all the buckets coming from deep.

Both teams were missing several starters.

The Nuggets are hoping to get Christian Braun (left ankle) and Cameron Johnson (right knee) back before the All-Star break but won't have Aaron Gordon (right hamstring) until mid-March. Ruled out for the Thunder were Jalen Williams (hamstring), Ajay Mitchell (abdomen) and Alex Caruso (right adductor strain).

The Thunder did have center Isaiah Hartenstein (calf) and the Nuggets had Jokic (knee), both of whom returned to their respective lineups Thursday.

Thunder: Host the Orlando Magic on Tuesday night.

Nuggets: Visit the Detroit Pistons on Tuesday night.

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

Denver Nuggets guard Julian Strawther, left, drives to the rim as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and forward Jaylin Williams, right, defend in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić, left, gets tangled up with Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jaylin Williams in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Denver Nuggets guard Jamal Murray, back, gestures as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort prepares for tip off in the first half of an NBA basketball game, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

Oklahoma City Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, right, looks to pass the ball as Denver Nuggets guard Jalen Pickett defends in the first half of an NBA basketball game Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026, in Denver. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)

CARTAGO, Costa Rica (AP) — Preliminary and partial results showed the Costa Rican president’s handpicked successor poised to win the presidency in a crowded field after Sunday's election.

The Supreme Electoral Tribunal reported that with votes from 88.4% of polling places tallied, conservative populist Laura Fernández of the Sovereign People's Party had 48.5% of the vote. Her closest challenger was economist Álvaro Ramos of the National Liberation Party with 33.3%.

Ramos conceded Sunday night and pledged to lead a “constructive opposition,” but one that would not let those in power get away with anything.

“In democracy dissent is allowed, criticizing is allowed,” he said.

Fernández spoke to her supporters after Ramos conceded and President Rodrigo Chaves congratulated her.

“Costa Rica has voted and it has voted to continue the change, a change that only seeks to rescue and perfect our democratic institutions and return them to you, to the sovereign people, to create more well-being and prosperity for our people,” Fernández said.

“The mandate the sovereign people give me is clear: the change will be deep and irreversible,” she said.

At least 40% of the total vote is required to win the presidential election in the first round. Otherwise, the top two candidates will go to a runoff on April 5.

Fernández campaigned on continuing the policies of the term-limited Chaves.

The historically peaceful Central American nation’s crime surge in recent years could be a deciding factor for many voters. Some fault Chaves' presidency for failing to bring those rates down, but many see his confrontational style as the best chance for Costa Rica to tame the violence.

Fernández was previously Chaves’ minister of national planning and economic policy and, more recently, his minister of the presidency.

She is Chaves' favored successor and was considered the frontrunner headed into Sunday's election.

Costa Ricans also voted for the 57-seat National Assembly. Chaves’ party is expected to make gains, but perhaps not achieve the supermajority he and Fernández have called for, which would allow their party to choose Supreme Court magistrates, for example.

Twenty contenders were seeking the presidency, but no candidate other than Fernández and Ramos reached 5% in the preliminary and partial results.

Some 3.7 million Costa Ricans are eligible to vote. They began casting their ballots at 6 a.m. Sunday and voting continued until 6 p.m.

Ronald Loaiza, an electrical engineer, was one of the first to vote amid rain and cold early Sunday at a school in Cartago, about 25 kilometers (15 miles) east of San Jose. He came early so that he could accompany his father to vote later in another town.

“I hope that it’s a democratic celebration, that the people come out to vote,” he said. “It’s very important that we exercise the right that this country gives us, that we’re conscious of our democracy.”

Four years ago, Chaves ran an outsider campaign that carried him to victory over the country's traditional parties, despite the fact that he had briefly served as economy minister in a previous administration. His framing of traditional parties as corrupt and self-interested resonated in a country with high unemployment and a soaring budget deficit.

Presidential candidate Laura Fernández addresses supporters after polls closed in San Jose, Costa Rica, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carlos Borbon)

FILE - Costa Rica President Rodrigo Chaves attends the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Jan. 18, 2023. (AP Photo/Markus Schreiber, File)

Costa Rica's presidential candidate Laura Fernandez prepares to cast her vote at a polling station in Cartago, Costa Rica, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carlos Borbon)

FILE - Costa Rica's former finance minister Rodrigo Chaves speaks to supporters at his headquarters in San Jose, Costa Rica, after winning a presidential runoff election, April 3, 2022. (AP Photo/Carlos Gonzalez, File)

Costa Rica's presidential candidate Laura Fernandez prepares to cast her vote at a polling station in Cartago, Costa Rica, Sunday, Feb. 1, 2026. (AP Photo/Carlos Borbon)