"Ant won the AURA BOWL": Fans pick upon Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's rusty performance as Anthony Edwards shines"

Oklahoma City Thunder star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had a night to forget against the Minnesota Timberwolves on Thursday. The Canadian star had a rusty performance against Anthony Edwards, who helped his team defeat the Western Conference leaders 116-101.

Fans on X (formerly Twitter), picked on Shai's performance against Edwards and Co. Many were livid about the OKC star's performance, with one suggesting that Ant took home the "Aura" points on the night:

"Ant won the AURA BOWL against Shai," he wrote.

Timberwolves fans picked on Shai and OKC fans:

"We outmeated Shai," commented one fan.

"Alright, what are the excuses Thunder fans?" questioned another.

"WOLVES HOWL INTO BREAK, Timberwolves Secure Thrilling Win," commented a third.

Neutrals, though, seemed to love the close encounter between the two teams as one fan hoped for a playoff tie between the two:

"Show me a 7-game series between this teams now," he demanded.

Another fan was shocked by the result, as not many were expecting the No. 1-placed Thunder to get beaten by the Timberwolves:

"I love both teams, but I had OKC winning and didn’t expect the Wolves to pull it off. Huge win for them!" the fan expressed in astonishment.

Despite the backlash received by Shai, the MVP frontrunner was the highest scorer for his team with 24 points in 31 minutes, but his 6-21 field-goal attempts proved costly.

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Shai Gilgeous-Alexander responds to Anthony Edwards' "MVP" claims with a heartfelt message

During the last meeting between the Minnesota Timberwolves and the OKC Thunder on Dec. 31, Anthony Edwards had huge praise on OKC star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, claiming that the Canadian deserved the MVP title last year.

The Thunder beat the Timberwolves 113-105, with Shai dropping 40 points to seal the deal against Ant's team. Edwards spoke highly of the MVP candidate, calling him "unguardable":

"To me, he's unguardable," the Minnesota guard said "It's incredible, man. If he is keeping him like that, I hope they give (MVP) to him this year for sure. I feel like he should have won it last year, but he's playing out his mind right now," he continued laying high praise.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander responded to Edwards' comments, showing gratitude in a heartfelt message:

"The best satisfaction is when your peers and the guys that do the same thing for a living at a very high level recognize and respect your craft," he expressed.

Edwards took home the win on Thursday and avenged his team's loss in the matchup earlier this season.