SAN ANTONIO — The San Antonio Spurs defeated the Houston Rockets 145-120 in the NBA, powered by Victor Wembanyama's 29 points and De'Aaron Fox's double-double of 20 points and 10 assists, a victory that extends the Texas team's strong momentum and reinforces their position atop the Western Conference.
The game was marked from the start by Wembanyama's impact. The 7'4" center opened the scoring with a three-pointer from beyond 23 feet and shortly after created another advantage with a drive from the perimeter before attacking the rim to score a layup with his left hand despite tight defense from Alperen Şengün.
San Antonio quickly took control of the game. The Spurs opened a double-digit lead midway through the first quarter, though Houston responded when Wembanyama went to the bench. The Rockets even took a 27-26 lead with two minutes remaining in the opening quarter and closed the first period with a 33-32 advantage.
From that point on, the San Antonio squad reasserted its offensive rhythm. Wembanyama delivered one of the game's most spectacular plays with a reverse dunk with contact that resulted in a three-point play, extending the lead to 83-61 just three minutes into the third quarter.
The Spurs' dominance was also collective. Stephon Castle added 23 points and Keldon Johnson contributed 20, while the team put on an efficient offensive display with 38 assists, 58% shooting from the field, and 53% from three-point range (21 of 40). Additionally, San Antonio continuously punished Houston's interior, where the Rockets allowed 56 points in the paint, their highest total of the season.
For the Rockets, Kevin Durant and Amen Thompson led the scoring with 23 points each in a game where Houston's team could not slow down the home team's offensive pace.
The victory allows the Spurs (47-17) to extend their winning streak to four consecutive games and solidify their dominance in the season series against Houston at 3-1, while reinforcing their position as the second seed in the West, two and a half games behind Oklahoma City.
For the Rockets (39-24), the loss drops them to fourth place in the Western Conference, half a game behind Minnesota (40-24) and seven games behind San Antonio in the loss column, in a recent stretch marked by alternating wins and losses over their last six games.