With three days of rest behind them, the San Antonio Spurs had plenty of gas in the tank to play free basketball. They dug deep for another clutch win at the Frost Bank Center. They survived every counterpunch from the Atlanta Hawks in a 133-126 overtime win to improve to 14-13 on the season.
Trae Young and DeAndre Hunter gave the Spurs just about all they could handle with clutch scoring at the end of regulation. Hunter had the game-tying dunk over Victor Wembanyama, ultimately leading to a double-technical for both players after some jawing. But it was the clutch play of Wembanyama and Chris Paul that earned the Spurs a victory.
Wembanyama continued his dominance of the Eastern Conference with 42 points (including 7 threes), 6 rebounds, 5 assists, 2 steals, and 4 blocks. CP3 hit dagger threes in overtime, finishing the game with 12 points, 8 assists, and 4 steals on a perfect 4-4 shooting from the field.
San Antonio is now 7-3 in clutch games this season. One of their previous clutch wins came against the Portland Trailblazers, who will come to town for the Spurs’ next game, on Saturday night.
Observations
- Jeremy Sochan’s energy gave the Spurs an edge all game long. He finished with 20 points, 8 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 blocks. His play on the defensive side of the ball was impressive. His improvement on the offensive end is apparent as he’s showing more touch in the paint, and hit a big-time three in the second half. He played a team-high 42 minutes as Mitch Johnson used him as the team’s backup center in the second half. The third-year man has established himself as a key part of the Spurs core.
- Devin Vassell re-entered the starting lineup and made the most of it with 23 points on 9-16 shooting from the field. Vassell’s three-point jumper was pure all night as he shot 5-7 from deep. San Antonio’s new starting lineup of Paul, Vassell, Harrison Barnes, Sochan, and Wembanyama played well together on both ends. Expect more of that if the Spurs can maintain their health.
- Keldon Johnson was rock solid off the Spurs bench and closed the game with Paul, Vassell, Sochan, and Wembanyama. He made some clutch defensive plays and fit well into the offense. He crashed the glass in the clutch and operated as another hustle player alongside Sochan. Johnson finished with 11 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and 2 steals.
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