Jalen Williams highlighted a 24-point performance with a back-breaking 3 with three minutes left, and the Oklahoma City Thunder beat the New Orleans Pelicans 97-89 on Monday night to complete a four-game sweep of their first-round playoff series.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 24 points and 10 rebounds for Oklahoma City, which trailed by five in the fourth quarter before suddenly seizing control with a combination of stifling defense and opportunistic shooting.

New Orleans led 80-75 and had a chance to take what would have been the biggest lead for either team when Jose Alvarado blocked Gilgeous-Alexander and sent CJ McCollum the other way on a two-on-one break.

McCollum could not convert at the rim, however. Soon after, Chet Holmgren’s putback and Josh Giddey’s 3 tied it at 80 and ignited a decisive 18-2 run, capped by Williams’ second-chance 3, that put the Thunder up 93-82 with 3:08 left.

New Orleans, which played the entire series without star power forward Zion Williamson, never recovered.

Giddey and Holmgren each scored 14 points. Holmgren also had nine rebounds.

McCollum scored 20 for New Orleans, which continued to be plagued by poor 3-point shooting. The Pelicans hit just eight of 34 shots from deep (23.5%).

Jonas Valanciunas had 19 points and 13 rebounds but might have produced more had he not been limited by foul trouble to 26 minutes on the court. Naji Marshall hit half of the Pelicans’ 3s and finished with 16 points.

The Thunder held a 44-43 halftime lead in a game that was highly competitive through three quarters, with 18 lead changes and neither team leading by more than five.

New Orleans stayed close despite Brandon Ingram missing nine of his first 10 shots and 12 of 14 for the game.

Ingram’s free throws with 3 seconds left in the third quarter gave the Pelicans a 71-70 lead at the end of the period, but he finished with just eight points when more was needed of him with Williamson out of the lineup.

Reporting by The Associated Press.

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Wyatt Hendrickson landed in Stillwater, even if just for a layover.

Hendrickson, who has wrestled at heavyweight for Air Force the past four years, posted on Instagram on Monday that he visited Oklahoma State after entering the transfer portal last week. His caption was, “1 of 4,” alluding Stillwater was his first of four stops before deciding his next and final destination. Missouri, Michigan and Minnesota have also reportedly been in the mix to land the top prospect in the portal this offseason.

Hendrickson is a two-time Big 12 champion and two-time All-American, placing third at heavyweight the past two seasons at the NCAA Wrestling Championships. He was Most Outstanding Wrestling after winning his first conference title at the Big 12 Wrestling Championships in 2022. Hendrickson beat OSU’s Luke Surber in the finals that year. Surber started at 197 pounds for the Cowboys this past season. Hendrickson has also led the country in falls the past three seasons, and in 2022 and 2023 was awarded NCAA Most Dominant Wrestler honors, which is given to the wrestler who earns the most points for their team during the season.

Transferring from a service academy was not a simple process for Hendrickson, prompting the late entry after competing at the United States Olympic Team Trials two weeks ago. He was unable to use his extra year of eligibility because of COVID at the academy and had to receive clearance from the United States Air Force to transfer in order to use that last year of eligibility. He reportedly entered the portal on Wednesday.

So far, OSU has had two portal commitments this offseason in Dean Hamiti and Caleb Fish, both of which wrestled at 165 pounds this past season. Hamiti is a two-time All-American from Wisconsin and Fish was a three-year starter at Michigan State. Those two additions are compared to the Cowboys losing only 149-pounder Sammy Alvarez so far to the portal despite coach John Smith retiring. OSU wrestlers are able to transfer within 30 days from Smith’s retirement, which would be May 11. OSU has yet to announce its next head coach, with Coleman Scott serving as interim head coach since Smith’s retirement.

SULPHUR, Okla. – At least three EF-3-rated tornadoes destroyed entire communities in Oklahoma over the weekend, killing four people in the state and leaving survivors searching through ruins.

Damage survey teams with the National Weather Service in Norman, Oklahoma, said they found damage consistent with at least EF-3 tornadoes based on the Enhanced Fujita Scale in the towns of Sulphur, Holdenville and Marietta. Further assessment is needed in Sulphur and Marietta, which might warrant a stronger tornado rating. 

The tornado in Sulphur ripped through the downtown area, destroying nearly every business on West Muskogee Avenue. At least one death has been confirmed after a woman’s body was found in one of the buildings after the storm.

The only silver lining is that the twister hit late Saturday night when the downtown area was mostly empty.

Two other deaths were reported in Holdenvile and one in Marietta. 

FOX Weather Correspondent Brandy Campbell reported from Sulphur on Monday, where the area most devastated by the storm continues to deteriorate. Some buildings crumble with gusts of wind, and the area is closed to the public because of the hazardous conditions.

DESTRUCTIVE TORNADOES TEAR ACROSS AMERICA’S HEARTLAND LEAVING 5 DEAD IN TWO STATES IN WORST OUTBREAK OF 2024

“Police have said they’re trying to limit people coming back here because they have had some buildings continue to collapse,” Campbell said.

Owners with businesses on West Muskogee Avenue are shocked that the entire stretch of a vibrant downtown community that was home to arts, restaurants and other shops is just gone. 

Larry, Allison and Vicki Combs own an antique furniture business in Sulphur that was destroyed by the tornado. On Monday, they said their business wasn’t recognizable. 

“You see it on TV, (in) other places, and you feel bad for those people, but you really don’t know it ’til it’s you, ’til it hits you,” Larry Combs said.

Christy Morris, owner of The Mix Mercantile, said she first learned the tornado was happening when the security alarm notified her the doors were ripped open. 

After waiting for the path to be clear enough to see the damage the next morning, Morris said it was “catastrophic.” 

“There is no way that we are going to be able to salvage it,” she said.

The Table restaurant, another local business that shared The Mix Mercantile building, was also destroyed in the tornado. Morris said it’s especially devastating because the historic building was constructed in the 1920s.

Still, Morris said they would like to rebuild in downtown Sulphur.

“It would be terrible if we couldn’t build back in that location, in that town, because it truly is a very special place,” Morris said.

Recovery efforts face more severe weather this week

A heavy fog settled over the destruction in downtown Sulphur on Monday, and local officials are concerned about the possibility of severe weather this week. 

HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER

Sulphur, Oklahoma forecast this week.
(FOX Weather)

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Another round of severe weather is targeting the Plains and Midwest, shifting back into western Oklahoma by Wednesday. 

Tornadoes, very large hail and damaging winds are the primary threats.

Thunderstorms and heavy rain are possible for Sulphur on Wednesday and Thursday.