NBA: Thunder holds off Raptors after Isaiah Joe erupts in third quarter

Isaiah Joe scored 19 of his 22 points in the third quarter Tuesday night and the visiting Oklahoma City Thunder held on to defeat the Toronto Raptors 116-107.

Cason Wallace added a game-high 27 points with eight rebounds and seven assists for the Thunder, who have won three games in a row and five of six. Alex Caruso added 16 points, Luguentz Dort contributed 15 points and Isaiah Hartenstein scored 11 with nine rebounds.

The teams split their two-game season series.

RJ Barrett scored 21 points for the Raptors, who had won their two previous games. Scottie Barnes and Brandon Ingram each scored 15 points. Ja'Kobe Walter and Immanuel Quickley scored 17 points apiece and Jamal Shead added 13 points.

The Thunder led by as many as 25 before taking an 18-point lead into the fourth quarter. With the help of strong defense, Toronto quickly cut the lead to 10 on Barrett's jumper with 10:20 to play. Ingram knocked in five straight points to trim the margin to five with 5:59 left.

Shead's 3-pointer tied the game at 101 before the Thunder regained an eight-point lead on Wallace's two layups and Joe's 3-pointer. Dort's jumper gave the Thunder a 10-point lead with 2:36 to go.

Toronto took advantage of seven Thunder turnovers to lead 32-25 after one quarter.

Oklahoma City improved their ball handling while adjusting to Toronto's defense, and took a five-point lead when Wallace made a 3-pointer with 5:06 left in the second quarter. The lead grew to eight before Toronto responded with four straight points. The Thunder pulled ahead by 11 when Caruso scored five consecutive points, ending the half with a 60-51 lead.

Hartenstein's 3-point play gave Oklahoma City a 12-point lead with 6:40 remaining in the third quarter. The lead expanded to 16 on Joe's 3-pointer with 3:44 left in the third. Joe then added a four-point play to push the lead to 20. He scored another four-point play with 1:55 remaining, increasing the margin to 25. The Thunder led 98-80 after three quarters.

The Thunder were without Shai Gilgeous-Alexander (abdominal strain), Jalen Williams (hamstring strain) and Ajay Mitchell (abdominal strain, ankle sprain).

Toronto's Jakob Poeltl (rest) did not play.

--Field Level Media/Reuters