Victor Wembanyama drops 38-point double-double in wire-to-wire win over Pistons

Coming off a blowout win against the Philadelphia 76ers, the Spurs returned home after their Rodeo Road Trip to face the number one seed in the East, the Detroit Pistons. The Spurs started hot, outscoring the Pistons 38-23 in the first quarter. De’Aaron Fox dropped 16 of his 29 points in the first quarter alone. The Pistons kept pace scoring-wise in the second, but were unable to get stops on defense as the Spurs carried a 16-point lead into halftime. In what looked like a potential blowout, the Spurs were then outscored 30-22 in the third, and only carried an eight-point lead into the fourth. However, Victor Wembanyama, Carter Bryant, and Devin Vassell stepped up with key defensive plays to stop the Pistons from closing the deficit. The Spurs outscored the Pistons 28-21 in the fourth and ultimately won 121-106.

Victor Wembanyama led the way with a double-double: 38 points (12-24 FG, 10-11 FT) and 16 rebounds to go along with five blocks and three assists. After a handful of decent scoring games, Wemby exploded with his most points scored in a game this season since February 10th against the Lakers (40 points). Wemby’s scoring came from threes, (slightly) contested midranges, dunks, and free throws. Wemby fought through contact almost every single time he touched the ball, and was rewarded with 11 free-throw attempts in which he made 10. When Wemby has scoring explosions like this, it is hard for the rest of the league to keep up. Oh yeah, he dominated the boards and also locked down the paint once again with five blocks.

FROM THE FROST BANK CENTER LOGO! Wemby beats the shot-clock buzzer with a DEEP three to get the first points of the game!

Double block into an and-one! After Carter and Vic swatted Caris LeVert’s layup attempt, Vic drove into the paint on the other end and cleaned up his mess for the and-one slam!

Too much space! After Isaiah Stewart gets caught ball-watching, Devin Vassell finds an open Wemby for the three-ball!

Cleanup on aisle one! After Stephon Castle drives in and gets the switch, he fades away on Jalen Duren and misses. However, because of the switch, Wemby puts back the miss with ease on Cade Cunningham!

WEMBY SEQUENCE! Wemby hovers between Cunningham and Stewart, then manages to swat Cunningham’s midrange attempt! On the ensuing fastbreak, Dev lobs it up to Wemby for the slam!

De’Aaron Fox dropped 29 points (12-22 FG), five rebounds, three assists, two steals, and a block. D-Fox was on fire to start, dropping 16 of his 29 points in the first quarter. He dropped six more in the second and seven in the fourth. D-Fox had a handful of low-scoring games in the last week, but this performance reminded Spurs and NBA fans that he can still put up points at a moment’s notice. The two-time all-star’s focus is on winning, no matter how many points he puts up per night.

D3’AARON! D-Fox drained his first of four threes on a catch and shoot early in the first!

STEPBACK SPLASH! D-Fox pulls out the moves on Marcus Sasser and finishes with a stepback three in his face!

Too crafty! On the fastbreak, D-Fox loses the handle but regains his balance and finishes at the rim over multiple defenders!

Julian Champagnie dropped 17 points (3-6 3PT), seven rebounds, and a dime. Julian’s sharpshooting skills were on full display, and he also put the ball on the floor to slash and draw fouls. Early in the third, it appeared that Julian may have been injured, but he returned to the game nonetheless and proceeded to drain key threes in the fourth. Ever since he became a starter for the rest of the season, Julian has been on fire from three, and does not look to be slowing down anytime soon.

CHAMPAGNI3! No matter where he is on the court, Julian can catch, step in, and drain the three with ease!

Corner specialist! Julian is left wide open for the corner three late in the ballgame to provide more cushion for the Spurs’ lead!

Stephon Castle dropped a double-double: 11 points and 12 assists to go along with two steals, a block, and a rebound. Steph dished out dimes to anyone who was wearing a black jersey. Whether it was finding open shooters, open cutters, or lobs, Steph made the right pass. Since D-Fox was having a high-scoring night, Steph picked his spots to drive and kick out. He also the tough assignment of guarding Cunningham once again. Even though Cade had more points than the last time they matched up, Steph held his own and held him to 38.5% shooting. The way Steph has been defending star guards this season, it may warrant an All-Defensive selection.

TOUGH BUCKET! Steph drives past Ron Holland II and finishes at the rim despite the contact from Duren!

Steph dime! On the fastbreak, Steph stays patient and finds a cutting Keldon Johnson who finishes through two defenders! KJ dropped eight points, four rebounds, a dime, and made a huge hustle play in the fourth.

Another drive, another bucket! Despite Wemby falling before the screen, Steph still drives in on Holland II and finishes off the glass!

Game-clinching sequence! After the amazing Dev block on Javonte Green, Wemby swats Green’s shot again after he recovered his own miss, and then Dev found Steph on the other end for the and-one!

Devin Vassell dropped eight points, three rebounds, three assists, and a block. While it wasn’t a blazing shooting game for Dev, he made his impact in a key defensive stop. As mentioned before, Dev stopped a momentum-building layup for the Pistons late in the game that sparked a Wemby block and a Steph and-one on the other end. Dev also slashed and dimed when the team needed to generate points. Just like Julian, Dev is another x-factor for this young contending team.

Get out and run! Dev starts the fastbreak by sprinting down the court, crossing over Tobias Harris, and banking a floater off the glass!

Dylan Harper dropped seven points, two rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Although it was not the biggest impact game from Dylan, he had his share of highlights. Like KJ, he made hustle plays and provided the starters with a spark off the bench. With D-Fox lighting the nets on fire and Steph dishing out dimes, Dyl filled in the gaps as was required.

HARP3R! After fighting for the offensive rebound, Dyl floated his way to the corner and rewarded himself with a three!

COOKIES! Dyl picked the pocket of Duncan Robinson and finished on the other end with a slam!

Carter Bryant dropped two points, six rebounds, and three blocks. With Harrison Barnes missing another game due to injury, Carter stepped up on the defensive end. His athleticism is so raw that he can fly high for blocks at the rim and alley-oop jams. With more playing time as the season has 20 games remaining, Carter’s defense and athleticism may be too great to warm the bench.

HE JUMPED OVER HIM! D-Fox drives in the paint and lobs it up to a cutting Carter, who JUMPS OVER Sasser for the alley-oop jam!

CHASEDOWN ARTIST! With the Pistons only trailing by eight, Carter hustles and swats a LeVert layup off the backboard!

All in all, this was another statement game for the silver and black. After defeating the Pistons last week on the road, the Spurs dominated the number one team in the East in a wire-to-wire victory. This young team continues to amaze with its deadly offensive and defensive firepower. As the schedule gets tougher in the coming weeks, let this game be a reminder of how unlimited this team’s potential is for the postseason.

Finally, here are the full game highlights.

A quick turnaround: The Spurs take on the Los Angeles Clippers on a SEGABABA at 8:30 P.M. (CST) on ESPN/FDSN-SW.