DIRECT. New York – San Antonio: Wembanyama gains momentum, the Spurs take the advantage

Superb pass found by Wembanyama for Vassell, who scores a huge dunk!

Defensive rebound taken by Wembanyama on a shot by Brunson. The Frenchman returned to finish the half.

Full of power, Brunson pierces the opposing racket and allows New York to get back in front.

Here we go again at Madison Square Garden. Still 5 minutes before the break.

Finally a three-point shot converted by the Knicks, and by Achiuwa in the left corner. The Knicks are down to one point. Time-out requested by the Spurs.

Mikal Bridges pierces the Spurs racket.

After offering two free throws converted by Brunson, Wembanyama was called back to the bench.

Still no outside address for the Knicks, this time for McBride. The Knicks are 2/17 from 3-point range. In the process, Wembanyama brought his total to 19 points.

The Knicks score a little more since the timeout and come back into the game.

Brunson misses a three-pointer and offers a long-range shot opportunity to Chris Paul. It's a miss but Wembanyama takes the rebound in the racket before dunking!

New possession lost directly by the Knicks, and by Karl-Anthony Towns.

Tom Thibodeau calls for a time-out after the new points scored by the Spurs, who set the target on the shoot. Opposite, the Knicks are completely upside down in three-point shooting (1/15). Victor Wembanyama, who does not hesitate to try his luck from afar, has already scored 15 points.

+5 for the Spurs thanks to Chris Paul's beautiful three-point shot!

Long pass from Chris Paul converted by Tre Jones. Wembanyama takes advantage of the same phase of play to score straight away, once at two points, then at three points!

First points scored by the Knicks to start the second quarter.

The siren sounds to signal the end of the first quarter. Played at a very slow pace, the match was mainly marked by the inaccuracies of the two teams in shooting. Already in place on the counter, Victor Wembanyama corrected the situation by scoring twice at 3 points in the final moments (2/6 at long distance for the moment).

Towns gives the Knicks a two-point lead on the next play. In the process, Castle still misses one free throw out of two.

It was enough to say it for Wembanyama to take responsibility at three points in the axis! The Spurs are picking up.

1/2 for Castle on free throws. The Spurs have been very inaccurate in shooting since the start of the game.

In two stages, Towns scores again with the help of the racket.

Towns attempts a dunk and is fouled by Wembanyama in the process. On the free throw line, the Knicks leader converts his two attempts.

Finally ! In the right corner, Wembanyama scores his first three-point basket of the game, not the easiest he has attempted so far.

Tom Thibodeau requested a video challenge after a reported foul on Wembanyama in the paint. The referee changes his decision after watching the footage.

The Knicks call a quick timeout right away.

Play resumes at Madison Square Garden. Brunson scores his 7th point of the game and strengthens the Knicks' advantage. Victor Wembanyama makes his return to the floor.

New time-out requested 2'27 from the end of the first quarter.

Champagnie does the job to score three points and revive the Spurs.

Back on the free-throw line, Brunson is more skillful this time and converts his two attempts.

1/2 for Brunson on the free throw. The Knicks are two baskets ahead.

Here we go again, with a two-point shot converted by Brunson for New York. Wembanyama went to sit on the bench, just like Towns with the Knicks.

First time out requested. The start of the match is quiet for the two teams, who so far both lack three-point skill. The intensity is currently low, which we understand because it is currently 12 p.m. in New York.

New three-point failure for the Frenchman, who is now at 1/5 shooting. On the counterattack, Anunoby then Towns also misses from long distance.

After succeeding in his third block of the game, Wembanyama launches the offensive transition for the Spurs. He finds Sochan in the racket: +3 for San Antonio.

Chris Paul is very precise at long distance and transforms his three-point shot.

New three-point attempt missed by Wembanyama, who is 0/3 since the start of the match. In the process, Towns easily dunks.

Thanks to Sochan, the Spurs take the lead for the first time in the game.

It's Wembanyama's turn to go to the free throw line for two successful shots.

Victim of a foul in the paint, Vassell converts the first free throw of the game.

With the help of the board, Wembanyama scored his first points of the game.

Mikal Bridges followed up with two points. Wembanyama attempts a very long three-point shot in stride. It misses.

Found in the racket, Wembanyama was penalized with a “walk” on the first possession. Bridges scores the first points for the Knicks straight away.

The “Christmas Game”, pitting the Knicks against Victor Wembanyama’s Spurs, is on!

As is often the case in the NBA, the pre-match protocol drags on a bit. Tip-off should take place around 6:10-15 p.m.

Both teams have finished their warm-ups. Time for the pre-match ceremony, with the American national anthem.

A legendary NBA venue, Madison Square Garden already occupies an important place in the career of Victor Wembanyama, who was drafted there on June 23, 2023. On the other hand, on the floor, the French pivot failed against the Knicks for his first in a match at “MSG” on November 8, 2023 (only 14 points, large defeat 126-105).

For their part, the Knicks occupy 3rd position in the East. The New York franchise remains on five straight victories in the NBA and continues at Madison Square Garden after beating the Toronto Raptors (139-125) yesterday.

Victor Wembanyama and his team are currently warming up on the floor of Madison Square Garden.

Ranked in 9th place in the West, the Spurs are having a successful start to the season, after their difficulties last year. With 15 wins and 14 losses this season, the San Antonio franchise maintains a positive record but remains irregular. It remains with a big success against Portland on Sunday (114-94) and with a setback conceded to Philadelphia on Monday (111-106).

In addition to being very efficient in attack, the Frenchman does not neglect the defensive aspect and has progressed exponentially in one aspect of the game in particular: counterattack. 7 in Minnesota, 10 against Portland, 8 in Philadelphia… Wembanyama is the best blocker of the current season (95 in 24 matches), far ahead of his closest pursuer, Walker Kessler (64).

• No rest, even for Christmas, in the NBA! Victor Wembanyama's San Antonio Spurs travel to New York to face the Knicks this Wednesday at 6 p.m. French time (12 p.m. local time).
• In full swing in recent weeks, the French pivot has the honors of the “Christmas Game”, one of the major moments of the season, for the first time since his arrival in the NBA.
• “Wemby” will also try to win his first match in the legendary Madison Square Garden, where he missed last year.
• The Spurs had not been scheduled in prime time on Christmas Day since December 25, 2016.
• Currently 9th in the Western Conference, San Antonio remains on a victory against Portland (114-94) on Saturday and a loss to Philadelphia (106-111) on Monday.