The guys from Revenue Ads scored some playoff tickets and invited me down to watch the game.  The Oklahoma City Thunder are playing the Los Angeles Lakers in the First Round of the NBA’s Western Conference Playoffs.  This is a big deal for us Oklahomies.  This is our first professional sports team and the first professional playoff game ever played in Oklahoma.

Now I have a dilemma because my favorite team is the Los Angeles Lakers and always has been since I was young.  But, I ALWAYS root for the home team.  I decided I was going to root for the Oklahoma City Thunder because it was our state’s first playoff game ever, and I’m pretty confident that my Lakers will win the series.

The Lakers came out strong with a 10-0 lead and it looked like we would never score.  We would keep getting within 1 or 2 possessions, but every time we would gain some momentum Kobe would shoot one of his daggers and kill it for us.  There were a handful of great dunks, notably one by Russell Westbrook, of which I’ve included a video below.  The Lakers were up 5 to end the 1st quarter, 7 at half time and 1 heading into the 4th quater.  We didn’t sit for a large portion of the game and not at all in the 4th quarter.  We were finally able to take the lead with around 8 minutes remaining thanks to our defense and Kevin Durant finally getting into a rhythm after slumping all game long.

It turned out to be a freaking awesome game and I couldn’t have asked for a better game to attend.  The environment was absolutely insane.  The noise level was off the charts.  After the game Kobe Bryant was quoted as saying, “It was one of the loudest crowds I’ve ever played before in the postseason.“  And every seat had a blue Rise Together shirt on the back of it, turning the entire arena into a sea of blue.

I’m thankful for Clay Bennett and his desire to bring the team to Oklahoma City.  This Thunder team really has a lot going for them.  They had a 50-win season, made the playoffs and are the youngest team in the NBA if I’m not mistaken.  Their really young nucleus will allow for us to build an even better team in the coming years.  Even their coach, Scott Brooks, was awarded the NBA Coach of the Year award in the pregame ceremonies.

Thanks again Revenue Ads!

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