Victor Wembanyama gets revenge on the Rockets

For this third duel of the season between Spurs and Rockets, Alperen Sengun (18 points, 10 rebounds, 7 assists) opens the scoring with a basket against Victor Vembanyama (28 points, 16 rebounds, 5 blocks), but the French immediately responds. The Rockets start the game on a high with a 7/7 shot by Alperen Sengun and Amen Thompson (25 points, 7 rebounds).

After the winning shot from Kevin Durant (24 points, 6 assists), Mitch Johnson is forced to take a timeout, but that doesn’t stop Houston’s good momentum. Immediately following this break in play, KD added a mid-range shot. We had to wait five minutes and Alperen Senggun’s attempt from behind the arc to see the Rockets miss their first shot of the night. In the next possession, the Turk took advantage Luke Cornet in the racket and he shoots a long arrow at the end of this first act (36-26).

To come back, Spurs can count on Victor Vembanyama, who stands out with his alley-oop Stephen Castle and smashed against Amen Thompson’s head. Despite a first half in which the Spurs were more skilled than the Rockets (59% shooting compared to 50%), San Antonio trailed at the break (62-54).

The transition to the locker room did not immediately allow the guests of the Toyota Center to solve their defensive problems like this action where Houston manages to catch three consecutive offensive rebounds before Alperen Sengun returns the ball to the circle (74-63). After a failed “post” attempt on Victor Wembanyama, Amen Thompson waits a few minutes and changes the climbing target, successfullyLuke Cornet.

Victor Vembanyama is closing up shop

Despite this spectacular action, players from the San Antonio bench brought the Spurs back into the match. Keldon Johnson makes a 3-point shot. for his part, Dylan Harper (16 points, 8/11 shooting) finishes the counterattack before taking the lead Reed Sheppard and give your team the first advantage of the match. At the end of this third act, Kevin Durant serves Amen Thompson, and Houston leads by two points before entering the last twelve minutes of the game (86-84).

The lead was short-lived as Victor Wembanyama took charge to put Spurs ahead with free throws. In the process, Wemby plays on both sides of the field. In attack, he converted 2+1 while in defense he opposed Kevin Durant before intercepting Amen Thompson’s pass and sending De’Aaron Fox finish in a counter attack (97-88).

This good pass by the French combined with the terrible clumsiness of Houston at the end of the match (shot 3/22) allows San Antonio to win this Texas derby: 111 to 99.

WHAT TO REMEMBER

Ignition delay. Before the late game win, the Spurs took time to get going, especially on defense, which allowed Houston to start the game on 7/7 shooting. However, as the minutes ticked by, San Antonio stepped up and clamped down on defense to end the game allowing just thirteen points in the fourth quarter.

Bench to get back into it, Victor Vembanyama to finish. If San Antonio did not sink at the beginning of the match, it was thanks to the excellent entry of the reserve players into the game. The “second unit” was also responsible for getting Spurs back into the match during the third act. The 14-2 run in the third quarter that gave San Antonio its first lead of the game was made while Victor Wembanyama was on the bench. Without him, Keldon Johnson and Dylan Harper were responsible for running the offense and combined for 33 points compared to just 17 for the entire Rockets bench. When the Frenchman returns to the game, he continues the efforts made earlier by his teammates to bring victory to San Antonio.

Hard landing for the Rockets. This loss to Houston cannot be explained only by the good play of Victor Wembanyama. The Rockets missed their end of the match shooting 3/22 in the final twelve minutes of the game. This defeat is expensive for the people of Ime Udoka. If they succeeded, the Texans could come back with just one win second place occupied by their neighborsbut this failure forces them to look behind them. With a win earlier in the evening against the Mavericks, the Wolves now have their sights set on the fourth spot held by Houston.

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How to read statistics? Min = Minute; Shots = Shots Successful / Shots Attempted; 3 points = 3 points / attempt 3 points; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive jump; T = Total number of jumps; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal mistakes; Int = intercepts; Bp = lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = point difference when the player is on the court; Points = Points; Rating: player rating calculated based on positive actions – negative actions.