Thunder Beat Spurs 116-104 as Gilgeous-Alexander Scores 32 in Opener

Oklahoma City beat San Antonio 116-104 on Tuesday night at Frost Bank Center in the opening game of the season for both teams. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 32 points for the Thunder, who led 65-44 at halftime and by as many as 26 points. Jared McCain added 20 points off the bench and hit six three pointers. Oklahoma City starts 1-0. San Antonio starts 0-1.

A first half that decided it

Oklahoma City won the first quarter 34-28 and then held San Antonio to 16 points in the second quarter. By halftime the lead was 21 points. Gilgeous-Alexander had 27 points through three quarters. Chet Holmgren finished with 14 points, seven rebounds and four blocks. Jalen Williams scored 12 points. The Thunder shot 45.3 percent from the field and made 14 of 31 three pointers, a 45.2 percent rate that kept San Antonio from closing the gap for long.

Wembanyama held to one field goal

Victor Wembanyama scored 12 points and made only one of his 13 shots from the field. He made 10 of 12 free throws, grabbed 13 rebounds and blocked six shots, but San Antonio needed scoring from him and did not get it. Stephon Castle led the Spurs with 24 points. Rookie Dylan Harper scored 18 points and De'Aaron Fox had 14 points and seven assists. San Antonio won the third quarter 36-28 and cut into the lead, and the score was 93-80 to Oklahoma City after three quarters, but the Spurs never got the game back to single digits for good in the fourth.

Tempers flare, and a rookie answers

Early in the second quarter, with Oklahoma City ahead 37-28, Fox shoved Holmgren as he went up under the basket and Holmgren landed hard on the court. Players from both teams rushed in and had to be separated. Fox was called for a Flagrant 1 foul. Wembanyama and Jalen Williams, Jaylin Williams and Kenrich Williams of Oklahoma City were given technical fouls. In the third quarter, Thunder rookie center Aday Mara blocked Wembanyama at the rim, ran the floor and finished an alley oop dunk off a pass from Ajay Mitchell. Mara, the No. 12 pick in the 2026 draft, finished with seven points.

Why this opener mattered

This was a rematch of the 2025 Western Conference finals, which San Antonio won in seven games. The Spurs also won last season's regular season series 4-1, including a win in the NBA Cup semifinals, and they reached the 2026 NBA Finals before falling short. Both teams opened this season listed among the title favorites, with Gilgeous-Alexander and Wembanyama both in the early MVP conversation. On opening night, Oklahoma City's defense and bench scoring were the difference. The Thunder play next at home against Denver on Thursday, October 22.