Victor Wembanyama scored 27 points and grabbed nine rebounds in just 26 minutes, setting the tone with a strong first quarter as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Los Angeles Clippers 122-86 on Tuesday.
The Clippers, coming off a win in New Orleans the previous night, struggled throughout the game. Their performance was hurt by Wembanyama’s dominant start and the Spurs’ aggressive play.
Wembanyama scored 17 points in the first quarter alone, matching the total points of the entire Clippers team. By the end of the first half, San Antonio led by 25 points, and their advantage grew to 28 by the end of the third quarter. The Spurs led by as many as 41 points in the final moments of the game.
Keldon Johnson and Stephon Castle were key contributors off the bench for the Spurs, adding 17 and 15 points, respectively. Harrison Barnes chipped in with 11 points. The Spurs picked up their second win in three games, and this was their biggest margin of victory this season.
James Harden led the Clippers with 17 points, with 13 of those coming in the first quarter. Norman Powell finished with 15 points, and Amir Coffey scored 14, but the Clippers saw their three-game win streak come to an end.
The Spurs never trailed, starting the game with six quick points and building a lead to 18-8 on a jumper from Devin Vassell. Wembanyama scored nine of San Antonio’s last 11 points in the first quarter, and the Spurs ended the period with a 31-17 lead.
San Antonio’s lead grew to 20 points in the second quarter after a 3-pointer from Julian Champagnie. Wembanyama dunked off a steal by Chris Paul, and the Spurs’ lead reached 25 points before Powell’s layup made it 63-43 at halftime.
Wembanyama led all players at halftime with 21 points and seven rebounds, while the Spurs shot 50 percent compared to the Clippers’ 35.9 percent. Harden led the Clippers with 13 points, and Powell had 12.
Los Angeles never got closer than 19 points in the second half. The Spurs extended their lead to 86-57 after Johnson’s dunk with 3:22 left in the third quarter, heading into the final period with a 91-63 advantage.
San Antonio finished the game outshooting Los Angeles 49 percent to 34.5 percent.
