The Los Angeles Clippers defeated the San Antonio Spurs 128-116 on Wednesday night after a comeback led by 27 points apiece from Kawhi Leonard and Norman Powell.
In a fierce contest with San Antonio standout Victor Wembanyama, Los Angeles center Ivica Zubac contributed 21 points and 22 rebounds.
Wembanyama finished the Spurs with 12 rebounds and 23 points. Out of six games, they have lost five.
Wembanyama and Zubac fought all the way through the third quarter, with one exchange almost turning into a fight with 4:45 left after Harrison Barnes’ 3-pointer and a Clippers timeout.
Wembanyama got up and raced after the Clippers center after Zubac shoved him to the court from behind, but Spurs players and staff held him back as they walked onto the court for the timeout. When Zubac was blocked by Wembanyama on the previous play, he was clearly agitated and flailed his arms because no foul was called. Following a quick debate, officials decided not to examine the play and no technical foul was called.
Before Los Angeles finished with its third victory in four games, San Antonio ended the third quarter with a 17–9 run and seized a one-point lead in the fourth quarter.
Devin Vassell scored 19 points and Stephon Castle, a rookie guard for San Antonio, scored 20.
Takeaways
Clippers: Los Angeles’ 3-point shooting percentage was 50%.
Spurs: After missing multiple games due to a lower back injury, San Antonio forward Jeremy Sochan finished with seven points and zero rebounds.
Key moment
With 5:38 left in the game, Wembanyama’s step-back 3-pointer had placed the Spurs ahead 105-104, but the Clippers rallied on a 15-2 run over 3 1/2 minutes to take a 119-107 lead.
Key stat
Wembanyama blocked a shot and made a 3-pointer to increase his NBA record to 35 consecutive games.
Up next
On Friday, the Clippers will visit Charlotte. On Friday, the Spurs will host Milwaukee.