Victor Wembaneyama had 27 points and 17 rebounds as the host San Antonio Spurs defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves 126-97 to take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference semifinal series.
Wenbanyama returned to action on Tuesday after elbowing an opponent in the face in the second quarter of Sunday’s 114-109 loss to the host Timberwolves in Game 4.
When asked how nervous he was about returning to the court for Game 5, Wembaneyama said, “Very, very.” “I mean, I was fresh and I felt good. But to be honest, it’s hard to tell if I’m just excited or not. Obviously, I’m going to be butterflies and excited, so the excitement isn’t anything out of the ordinary.”
The Spurs led by as many as 18 points in the second quarter, but cooled down and settled for a 12-point advantage at halftime. After Minnesota rallied to tie the score at 61 four minutes into the third quarter, San Antonio scored 30 of the final 42 points of the period to take a 91-73 lead into the final 12 minutes.
“We moved away from what was working and our defense just fell apart,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “The last six minutes of the third quarter, most of it was just containing the ball, and then the offense found what was working and then just started breaking up plays. That’s my job. I’ve got to get us back on track. That’s on me.”
The Spurs increased their lead to 20 points early in the fourth. Minnesota responded with an 8-0 surge to pull within 93-81 with 9:34 left, but never got closer than 11 points the rest of the game.
For San Antonio, Keldon Johnson added 21 points off the bench, De’Aaron Fox had 18 points, Stephon Castle had 17 points and Devin Vassell and Dylan Harper each had 12 points. Harper also grabbed 10 rebounds.
“We played with the right amount of fear, discipline, execution, physicality and poise,” Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. “And I thought there was a lot of input tonight. And it was really good to see that. Different players stepped up at different moments of the game, so we needed everyone.”
Anthony Edwards led the Timberwolves with 20 points. Jayden McDaniels and Julius Randle each finished with 17 points, Ayo Dosunmu had 16 points and Naz Reid had 12 points.
Wenbangyama was strong from the start, scoring 16 of the Spurs’ first 24 points as San Antonio built a 24-9 lead with 6:17 left in the first period. The Timberwolves overcame the storm with Reed’s driving layup with 23 seconds left, cutting the lead to 34-30 after 12 minutes of play.
“We knew it was going to be a physical match, so we just tried to emphasize that and keep our opponents off their offense,” Castle said. “I thought we started the game well and the points came from there. But obviously they’re a good team. They’re going to make their own run.”
The Spurs scored the first nine points of the second quarter, culminating in a 3-point play by Castle, extending their advantage to 43-30.
San Antonio increased their lead to 58-40 on Wenbanyama’s alley-oop dunk with 3:24 left in the period, but missed their final eight shots of the quarter and allowed Minnesota to close to 59-47 at halftime.
Wenbanyama achieved a double-double in the first half alone, scoring 21 points and collecting 11 boards. Fox contributed 12 points for San Antonio before halftime.
Mitch Johnson said of Wenbanyama, “I think there’s only one word I’d like to use: mature.” “A lot happened in the last 48 hours, in the last game. I think it was very mature tonight for that young guy to come out and play in different ways in different situations, not just in terms of production, and defensively from start to finish.”
Dosunmu’s nine points set the Timberwolves’ offensive pace in the first half, with Reed and Edwards each adding eight points.
Minnesota continued its onslaught from the start of the third quarter, going on a 14-2 run on Dosunmu’s layup to tie the score at 61-61 at the 7:51 mark.
“At the end of the day, there’s not a single person in the locker room that’s worried,” Edwards said. “Hey, it’s another basketball game. So go outside, put on your boots, and get ready to go to work.”
Game 6 of the best-of-seven series will be played Friday in Minneapolis, with Game 7, if necessary, in the Alamo City on Sunday.
