Dejounte Murray stuffs the stat sheet as the Spurs pick up a much-needed victory

The San Antonio Spurs emerged victorious on Saturday night, relying on their superior depth, defensive activity, and unselfish play to knock off the reigning champions on the road.

Dejounte Murray filled the boxscore to the tune of 23 points, five boards, nine assists, and three steals, leading the good guys on both ends while pulling off some late-game heroics.

Derrick White’s early shooting clinic set the tone for the Spurs, and this time, the second unit stepped up behind steady performances from Bryn Forbes and Thaddeus Young.

The pick-and-roll chemistry between Dejounte and Jakob has been on point this season, and the pair connected on another sweet feed for the first field goal of the game.

Derrick White had the hot hand in the opening quarter, draining a trio of catch-and-shoot corner threes to keep San Antonio with striking distance of the Bucks.

Fourth-year forward Keita Bates-Diop reached deep into his bag of tricks and pulled out a nifty side-step that put the Spurs ahead by three points with the clock winding down.

Dejounte continued masterfully manipulating defenses as he attracted the attention of multiple Bucks before going airborne to fire a gorgeous two-handed overhead pass to a rolling Drew Eubanks.

And Bryn Forbes reminded Milwaukee why he was such an integral part of their elite long-distance barrage a season ago, tickling the twine on a transition triple.

Then backup point guard Tre Jones flawlessly slipped a screen, cut to the basket, and scored off a pinpoint pass from the top of the key via veteran forward Thaddeus Young.

Soon after, San Antonio turned defense into offense, converting a chase-down steal from Devin Vassell into an and-one as Thaddeus displayed his passing chops on a two-man fastbreak.

Keldon Johnson was up to his usual “Big Body’ shenanigans, bowling through the middle of the paint and bouncing off defenders on his way to a hoop and harm.

Forbes received heavy criticism for his defense during his last stint in San Antonio, but the undersized two-guard shined on both ends of the court on this sequence, going coast to coast for a contested layup.

Giannis is usually the guy bulldozing defenders around the rim. But Thad gave the former Defensive Player of the Year a taste of his own medicine with a power dribble finish that moved Antetokoumpo back a few feet.

Keldon ferociously swatted Pat Connaughton’s layup off the backboard, spurring a fastbreak that ended with a magnificent midcourt bounce pass from Lonnie Walker IV that perfectly led Dejounte to the rim.

Although Johnson hasn’t shot the three-ball all that well this season, the third-year forward came up huge down the stretch as he nailed a trifecta that gave the Silver and Black a seven-point cushion.

People asked which player would become San Antonio’s closer following the departure of DeMar DeRozan this summer. And Murray answered that question, sinking a clutch fourth-quarter dagger with Giannis in his grill.

And as always, here are the full-game highlights.