SAN ANTONIO —
Recap
Victor Wembanyama made the tying basket with 20 seconds left in regulation, the opening basket in overtime and finished with 21 points and 12 rebounds in his first NBA victory, helping the San Antonio Spurs beat the Houston Rockets 126-122 on Friday night.
Wembanyama had 16 points, eight rebounds and three blocks in the second half and overtime.
Devin Vassell scored 25 points and Keldon Johnson added 20 for the Spurs, who lost to Dallas on Wednesday in Wembanyama's highly anticipated debut and trailed late in this one before the No. 1 pick helped them pull it out.
Wembanyama's layup while defended by Jabari Smith Jr. made it 111-111 all and his jumper sent San Antonio to a 6-0 run to begin OT.
Houston center Alperen Sengun scored 25 points, Fred VanVleet added 24 and Jalen Green had 22. The Rockets have dropped their first two games of the season.
The teams tied for the worst record in the Western Conference last season at 22-60, sharing the best lottery odds along with Detroit. The Spurs won it to get the No. 1 pick and Wembanyama, with the Rockets selecting Amen Thompson fourth.
Wembanyama was 7 for 19 from the field, including three resounding dunks. He also had back-to-back blocks on the same possession with two minutes remaining and Houston leading 107-104. Wembanyama met Smith at the rim to block an attempted dunk and then rushed back on the court to block Smith’s floater.
Wembanyama notches first NBA win, Spurs tally first victory of the season with takedown of Rockets
The Spurs bridged the third and fourth quarters on an 8-0 run after falling behind by 10 points. San Antonio committed seven turnovers in the third quarter.
Wembanyama had five points in the opening three minutes after a slow start in his NBA debut.
Wembanyama made his first field goal attempt, an 11-foot fadeaway jumper over Dillon Brooks on the game’s opening possession. After initially missing the 7-foot-3 forward running behind the defense, Johnson lobbed the ball into a crowd and Wembanyama grabbed it and threw it down.
Wembanyama would score only one more point in the first half as he went 2 for 10 from the field.
Pregame
The Spurs (0-1) are set to take on the Rockets (0-1) Friday evening at Frost Bank Center in a battle of Texas teams searching for their first win of the young season.
San Antonio gave up the lead down the stretch of Wednesday's season-opening loss to the Mavericks, a game in which prized rookie Victor Wembanyama scored 15 points while limited to 23 minutes due to foul trouble, while still making several highlight-reel plays. The Rockets are coming off a 116-86 loss to the Magic.
Wednesday provided Wembanyama with his first taste of true NBA action, and while he said afterward that the night would have "been perfect with a win," he also said he and his young teammates were already looking ahead to the next game. San Antonio split two preseason games against Houston at Frost Bank Center last week.
Recent history
The Spurs have gone 3-2 in their last five games against the Rockets, though Houston is on a two-game winning streak against their in-state rivals, including a 142-110 blowout in March.
Fred VanVleet, Dillon Brooks and Alperen Sengun each scored 14 points for Houston in their season-opener, while Devin Vassell's 23 points led the Silver & Black against Dallas on Wednesday.
Injury report
Here's the latest injury report from the NBA:
Spurs:
- Devonte' Graham: Out, serving league suspension
Rockets:
- Tari Eason: Out, lower leg injury
- Jock Landale: Out, concussion
- Victor Oladipo: Out, patellar tendon
- Nate Hinton: Out, right ankle sprain
Game information
When: 7 p.m. CST
Where: Frost Bank Center, San Antonio
How to watch: Bally Sports Southwest
Follow KENS 5's Spurs team on Twitter for the latest updates:
>MORE SPURS COVERAGE:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
