OKC Thunder Clinches Top Seed In NBA's Western Conference Playoffs

The OKC Thunder have clinched the top seed in the NBA's Western Conference Playoffs.

Click here to watch News 9 live.

A three-way tie amongst the West's top teams came down to the final day of the regular season.

Oklahoma City (57-25) defeated the Dallas Mavericks, the Denver Nuggets defeated Memphis and the Phoenix Suns beat Minnesota.

That secures the Thunder's top spot in the West for the first time since 2012-13 and home-court advantage throughout the Western Conference Playoffs.

The Thunder will play the 8 seed, which will be determined by the NBA Play-In Tournament this week.

The OKC Thunder will open the playoffs on Sunday, April 21. Tip-off time has not been announced.

The playoff schedule for the first round will be released later on Sunday.

Related: A Look Back At The Oklahoma City Thunder In The NBA Playoffs

Thunder Rout Mavericks 135-86 To Clinch No. 1 Seed In Western Conference

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 15 points in one half of action, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rolled past the Dallas Mavericks 135-86 on Sunday to clinch the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference playoffs.

Oklahoma City finished with the same 57-25 record as the Denver Nuggets but own the tiebreaker. The Thunder hadn’t finished as the top seed since the 2012-13 season.

Aaron Wiggins scored 14 points and Chet Holmgren had 13 points and nine rebounds for the Thunder, who won their fifth straight to close the regular season.

The Thunder entered the day in a three-way tie with the Nuggets and Timberwolves for the best record in the Western Conference. It was the first time in NBA history that three teams entered the final day of the season tied for a conference lead.

The Thunder will have to wait for the Play-In Tournament’s conclusion to learn their first-round opponent.

NBA scoring leader Luka Doncic and star guard Kyrie Irving were among the four starters the Mavericks rested. Doncic had a sore left ankle and Irving had a sore left hamstring. The Mavericks already had clinched the No. 5 seed and a first-round matchup with the Los Angeles Clippers.

Brandon Williams scored 22 points and Olivier-Maxence Prosper added 15 for the Mavericks.

Oklahoma City ran out to an 11-0 lead as the Mavericks missed their first four shots. The Thunder led 39-22 at the end of the period.

Oklahoma City led 82-41 at halftime. The team set a season high for points in a half and fell one point short of a Thunder record for points in a half after missing a shot off the front iron at the buzzer. Oklahoma City shot 60.4% from the field before the break.

Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren sat at the start of the second half with the game under control. Oklahoma City hit the 100-point mark with 3:30 left in the third quarter and led 101-49 after a pair of free throws by Bismack Biyombo. Oklahoma City led 108-57 at the end of the third.

UP NEXT

Mavericks: Visit the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 1 of a Western Conference playoff series.

Thunder: Will host Game 1 of a Western Conference playoff series.

___

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA