OKLAHOMA CITY — Splitting a pair of free-throw attempts, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander ended his night as the buzzer sounded at the end of the third quarter. That was all asked out of him in a mostly stress-free game. He clocked out of his shift earlier than expected. First time in a long time for the reigning MVP.

The Oklahoma City Thunder enjoyed a much-needed runaway game with a 129-104 win over the Philadelphia 76ers. It was a get-right performance as they returned to their dominant ways.

That wasn’t the case early on, though. Don’t get me wrong, the Thunder offense was rolling. It looked elementary out there. Isaiah Hartenstein fed a bounce pass to Jalen Williams on the baseline cut for the open dunk. The only problem is that the Sixers had the same fun on their end.

Tyrese Maxey was unstoppable from the jump. He made Lu Dort and Alex Caruso look incredibly slow. He was too fast for OKC’s perimeter defenders as he blew by them for layups. The Thunder had a 32-29 lead after the first quarter.

The second quarter saw much of the same. The Thunder offense was humming along, but so was the Sixers when they had the ball. Maxey had an unreal 23 points in the first half. It’s impressive enough when an undersized ball-handler puts that up in any game against the league-best defense. Much less in one half.

The Thunder scored 32 points in the second frame. They entered halftime with a 64-62 lead over the Sixers. Paired with a puppet halftime show that had the entire OKC crowd quiet and confused, there were some pretty bizarro vibes from the first half.

Eventually, the Thunder returned to their defensive ways. Playing elite one-on-one defense, Caruso forced Maxey to put up a Hail Mary attempt from deep. Gilgeous-Alexander went the other way for the underhanded layup. Chet Holmgren hunted for his shot. They scored 38 points in the third frame to create some cushion on the scoreboard.

The Thunder had a 102-86 lead over the Sixers. Besides a couple of injury scares, everything was going right. Gilgeous-Alexander rested in the final frame. They scored 27 points in the final frame to fluff up the margin. They led by as many as 27 points.

The Thunder shot 58% from the field and went 10-of-28 (35.7%) from 3. They shot 19-of-25 on free throws. They had 27 assists on 50 baskets. Five Thunder players scored double-digit points.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 27 points and five assists. Holmgren had an efficient 29 points and nine rebounds. Williams tallied 14 points, six assists and four rebounds. Ajay Mitchell had 13 points and three assists in his return. Aaron Wiggins scored 15 points.

Meanwhile, the Sixers shot 42% from the field and went 17-of-43 (39.5%) from 3. They shot 17-of-21 on free throws. They had 21 assists on 35 baskets. Seven Sixers players scored double-digit points.

Maxey led the way with an efficient 28 points and five assists. Paul George had 12 points and four rebounds in his return to OKC. VJ Edgecombe struggled with 10 points on 3-of-16 shooting. Quentin Grimes had 13 points and three assists. Adem Bona tallied 11 points and eight rebounds. Justin Edwards scored 12 points. Jared McCain had 10 points and four rebounds.

Back to business as usual for the Thunder. The Sixers have been a cute story this season, but the reigning NBA champions are several tiers ahead. They snapped a two-game losing streak as a nice palate cleanser after their Christmas Day debacle. The defense needs to be tightened better throughout the entire game, but OKC showed it can still flip the switch when needed.

The Thunder finally grabbed a win with the starting lineup that won them an NBA championship last year. Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren looked like a pair of future All-Star teammates in about two months. A strong second half put this one away and allowed viewers to tune back into their NFL action.

Let’s look at Thunder player grades:

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander: A-plus

Getting Edwards to bite on the pump-fake, Gilgeous-Alexander took a giraffe-esque step forward. He switched hands with the ball as he went up for the easy layup that should make his highlight reel. The footwork remains impeccable. That’s one way to score your last bucket.

Gilgeous-Alexander finished with 27 points on 10-of-13 shooting, five assists and two rebounds. He shot 0-of-2 from 3 and went 7-of-9 on free throws. He also had two steals.

Considering how many holes Philadelphia’s defense has, this was light work for Gilgeous-Alexander. Sporting a new ‘Clean Slate’ bright white colorway shoe, there weren’t many marks or creases carved into them. Things were too easy for the drive-heavy scorer. He sliced through the Sixers’ defense as Joel Embiid sat out.

That got him into a flow. Gilgeous-Alexander dribbled to his favorite mid-range spots. He pulled up at the elbow on several Philadelphia defenders. None could cause enough disruption. This was a vintage outing as the reigning MVP did all his scoring damage in the paint, around the mid-range and at the free-throw line.

Gilgeous-Alexander helped put this one away early with 11 points in the third quarter. Chilling on the bench the rest of the way, the Thunder badly needed this. At the very least, to get their confidence back up. The following days after Christmas had fans question if they’re the true title favorite.

This showed why that’s the case. The Thunder remain an NBA win machine. One blip at home shouldn’t erase all of that work over the years. As long as Gilgeous-Alexander suits up, OKC will always have a chance against any opponent. Even if they look daunting.

Chet Holmgren: A-plus

Going at Dominick Barlow, Holmgren went into the post. A couple of spin moves and shoulder shimmies later, he flipped through enough angles to create just enough space. He went with the turnaround that rattled in. One minute in, that was the only sign you needed to see to know we were due a big game.

Holmgren finished with 29 points on 12-of-17 shooting, nine rebounds and one assist. He shot 2-of-4 from 3 and went 3-of-4 on free throws. He also had four blocks.

Stuck in his own head in these last two matchups against San Antonio, Holmgren’s confidence soared through the floor and became visible once again. He utilized his lanky frame to back up into the post and swish in a couple of fadeaway jumpers over defenders’ reach.

When Holmgren didn’t do that, he caught a handful of alley-oop passes. He was active throughout the night. When the ball reached his possession, he hunted for his shot. The Sixers had no answers to slow him down as a scorer. Several undersized players didn’t have the defensive talent to throw him off-kilter.

On the other end, Holmgren looked like a Defensive Player of the Year candidate. This was the best he’s looked as a rim protector in a while. After a hot first half, the Sixers went cold in the second half. Maxey only had five points in the latter two quarters as the open lanes were no longer there.

This is the peak version of Holmgren. He’s shown this season that he can put up buckets when needed. It’s all consistency for him. And specifically, against the NBA’s best teams. No offense to the Sixers, but they were treated as a get-right opponent. Now that he’s got a little bit of swagger, it’s about leveraging that confidence for higher-stakes matchups.

Jalen Williams: B-minus

Staying on Grimes, Williams redirected the ball away from him. He out-raced him for the loose ball and went straight to the rim for the steal-and-score sequence. The Thunder piled the Sixers on the scoreboard in the second half to put this one away.

Williams finished with 14 points on 4-of-10 shooting, six assists and four rebounds. He shot 0-of-1 from 3 and went 6-of-7 on free throws. He also had two steals.

Not much was needed from Williams in this one. He played within the flow of the offense. The drives to the basket resulted in either buckets or drawn fouls. That will likely be his bread and butter until his wrist feels more normalized. That’s been an ongoing battle this season.

Daigneault said pregame that Williams has to get used to his new normal with his surgically-repaired wrist. Which likely explains why the scoring efficiency numbers aren’t near where they were last season when he broke out as an All-NBA player for the first time.

Williams’ jumper wasn’t there once again. He had several misses from his usual signature spots. He badly missed a pull-up outside shot that was nowhere near the rim. The Thunder can survive his return pains for now. But if they want to go back-to-back, they need him to return to being a more reliable shooter.

Ajay Mitchell: A

Faking the pass, Mitchell had Edgecombe in the air. That split-second was enough for him to put the ball down and drive to the basket. He flew up for the floater that was out of Bonas’ reach. His finesse and scoring talent were badly missed in OKC’s last two losses.

Mitchell finished with 13 points on 5-of-9 shooting, three assists and one rebound. He shot 2-of-4 from 3 and went 1-of-2 on free throws. He also had two steals.

Out of concussion protocol, Thunder fans were excited that Mitchell returned. While not the sole reason for their two losses to the Spurs, the second unit’s minutes badly missed his ability to create and keep things moving. You saw why folks thought that as he slid right back into things against the Sixers.

When the ball swung to him, Mitchell wasn’t afraid to put up a shot. He could also drive his way to the basket. He’s not afraid to get physical with defenders. Andre Drummond roaming the paint didn’t scare him off. The Thunder need that type of personality on their offense.

Breaking up an alley-oop, Mitchell limped for a couple of possessions. He eventually checked out and went to the locker room. It’ll be interesting to see his status on the second night of this home back-to-back against the Atlanta Hawks. Even though OKC collected the win, rotation players like Mitchell, Isaiah Hartenstein and Isaiah Joe were all knocked out with injuries.

Aaron Wiggins: B

Punching the ball out of Philadelphia’s possession, Wiggins created another transition opportunity. Running the break, Wiggins eventually caught the look-ahead pass. He threw down the fastbreak dunk in the final seconds of a game-winning third quarter.

Wiggins finished with 15 points on 6-of-8 shooting, three rebounds and three assists. He shot 2-of-4 from 3 and went 1-of-2 on free throws. He also had two steals.

For the first time in a while, Wiggins looked him his early-season self. He sliced through the Sixers’ defense. Savvy off-ball cuts were rewarded with easy layups. He finished through traffic as the game got out of hand. He even saw a couple of outside jumpers fall in.

A nagging adductor injury has hindered Wiggins. You can tell that he’s not playing at the same speed or ferociousness since he first sustained the injury early in the season. This was the first time that wasn’t the case, though. Shoutout to the Sixers for letting everybody in OKC get its mojo back.

Highlights: