Victor Wembanyama scored 39 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and blocked five shots as the San Antonio Spurs held on for a 115-108 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 3 of their Western Conference semifinal series on Friday in Minneapolis.
Wembanyama made 13 of 18 shots, including 3 of 5 from beyond the arc, while lifting the Spurs to a 2-1 lead in the best-of-seven series.
“I’ve really been waiting since I’ve been in the league to live those moments, those high-stakes games,” Wembanyama said postgame on Prime Video. That’s what I love. … I’m built for this. I love this more than anything else.”
San Antonio’s De’Aaron Fox added 17 points, and Stephon Castle notched 13 points and 12 assists.
Fox did not hesitate when asked what the basketball world was witnessing from Wembanyama in his first postseason.
“Greatness,” Fox said. “We all know that. We see him every day. We see the work and the time that he puts into his game and his body, knowing that teams are going to come out here and try to be physical with him.
“He fights through that. He doesn’t complain. He knows what he’s going to endure, and he comes out here and he produces.”
Anthony Edwards scored 32 points and pulled down 14 rebounds to lead Minnesota. Naz Reid finished with 18 points and nine rebounds off the bench, and Jaden McDaniels scored 17.
Timberwolves guard Ayo Dosunmu said he and his teammates let the Spurs dictate the tempo too much on offense.
“I don’t think our point-of-attack (defense) was where it needed to be,” Dosunmu said. “There were too many times that we made a shot and then they came right back and got a good look. So we’ve got to do a better job of matching up and do a better job of controlling the point of attack and not letting them just live off attacking us.”
The teams will reconvene in Game 4 on Sunday evening in Minneapolis.
The Timberwolves, who trailed by 15 points in the first quarter, pulled within 106-103 with 3:27 remaining when Reid knocked down a 3-pointer.
On the next possession, Wembanyama drained his third 3-pointer of the evening. Wembanyama and Dylan Harper made two free throws each in the final minute to help seal the victory for the Spurs.
San Antonio led 86-79 at the end of the third quarter.
Emotions spiked in the third quarter after Harper got tangled up with McDaniels and hit his head as he fell to the court. As Harper stayed down, Castle stepped toward McDaniels to start a brief altercation, and officials moved in to calm the tensions.
Castle and McDaniels each received a technical foul. Harper returned to the game.
The score was tied at 51-all at the half.
San Antonio sprinted to an 18-3 lead to start the game thanks in large part to Wembanyama, who scored nine of the Spurs’ first 11 points. The Timberwolves struggled to keep pace as they missed their first 13 shots from the field.
Edwards heated up as Minnesota finished the first quarter on a 19-5 run to cut the deficit to one point. The Timberwolves’ early comeback culminated with a buzzer-beater from Edwards, who drained a 31-foot shot to pull Minnesota within 23-22.
–Field Level Media
