The San Antonio Spurs defeated the New York Knicks 130:126 at home in overtime in a regular season game in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Victor Wembanyama and Jalen Brunson put on a show for the audience at the Frost Bank Center in the Texas city.
The 20-year-old Wembanyama, first pick in the draft, played a great game and finished with a monstrous double-double - 40 points and 20 rebounds, adding 7 assists. The Frenchman also had four 3-pointers and his feat of at least 40 points and 20 rebounds was the first by a rookie in the league since Shaquille O'Neal, who scored 46 and grabbed 21 rebounds on February 16, 1993. It was Wembanyama's 39th double-double- double in 65 matches during the campaign. Devin Vassell added 23 points for the win, Keldon Johnson scored 17, and three others had 10 or more points - Tre Jones (13), Julian Champagnie (12) and Malaki Branham (10).
For the Knicks, Jalen Brunson exploded for a career-high 61 points, 24 of which came in the third quarter. The guard fell one point short of the franchise mark set by Carmelo Anthony on January 24, 2014. Brunson added 4 rebounds and 6 assists while finishing 25/47 and 5/13 from three. Donte DiVincenzo scored 20 points, and Josh Hart recorded a double-double - 12 points and 12 rebounds, giving 8 assists.
New York is fourth in the East with a record of 44-29, while San Antonio remains last in the Western Conference with 18 wins and 56 losses after its third straight victory. In their next games, the Spurs welcome the Golden State Warriors and the Knicks host the Oklahoma City Thunder.
In another game, the Sacramento Kings lost at home to the Dallas Mavericks 103:107. Kyrie Irving led the way for the Texans with 30 points, 14 of which came in the final quarter. Alexander Vezenkov did not play for the Kings again. The Bulgarian, however, is closing in on a return to action after missing the Kings' last 22 games due to injury.
The rest of the results:
Washington Wizards - Detroit Pistons 87:96
Orlando Magic - LA Clippers 97:100
Indiana Pacers - LA Lakers 109:90
Charlotte Hornets - Golden State Warriors 97:115
Cleveland Cavaliers - Philadelphia 76ers 117:114
Brooklyn Nets - Chicago Bulls 125:108
Oklahoma City Thunder - Phoenix Suns 128:103
Miami Heat - Portland Trail Blazers 142:82
Denver Nuggets - Minnesota Timberwolves 98:111
Utah Jazz - Houston Rockets 100:101. /BGNES
