Houston was led by Alperen Şengün, who continued his strong year after helping Turkiye to a silver medal at EuroBasket this summer. The 22-year-old centre posted a dominant line of 39 points, 11 rebounds, and seven assists on an efficient 50 per cent shooting from the field.
Four-time Olympic gold medallist Kevin Durant, making his Rockets debut following an off-season trade from Phoenix, added 23 points and nine rebounds but fouled out on the play that sent Gilgeous-Alexander to the line for the decisive free throws.
Gilgeous-Alexander had earlier forced overtime with a jumper in the closing seconds of regulation, while Şengün’s missed fadeaway at the buzzer extended the drama into a second extra frame. Chet Holmgren added 28 points and seven rebounds for Oklahoma City, and the Thunder bench outscored Houston’s 36–24.
Oklahoma City now heads to Indiana for a Finals rematch, while Houston travels to Detroit in search of its first win of the new season.