Victor Wembanyama poured in 24 points, grabbed 15 rebounds and hit two late baskets that helped the host San Antonio Spurs to a 121-103 victory over the Toronto Raptors on Monday.
It’s the first time since the 2017-18 season that the Spurs have started a campaign with four consecutive wins.
San Antonio led by as many as 22 and were up by 19 at halftime. The Raptors clawed back in the fourth, cutting their deficit to 101-93 by forging a 9-0 run thanks to three straight turnovers by San Antonio.
Toronto was within eight until Harrison Barnes canned back-to-back 3-pointers, the latter with 4:51 to play, to push the margin to 14. Those two shots from distance keyed a 13-1 run that included a step-back jumper and a driving basket from Wembanyama and salted away the win.
Stephon Castle added 22 points while Barnes had 18, Devin Vassell scored 15 and rookie Dylan Harper and Keldon Johnson contributed 11 and 10 points, respectively.
Toronto’s RJ Barrett led all scorers with 25 points, with rookie Collin Murray-Boyles hitting for 19, Immanuel Quickley tallying 15 and Brandon Ingram adding 14.
The Spurs roared out of the gate, building a 17-point lead in the first quarter while shooting 73.7% from the floor and carrying a 41-29 advantage.
Wembanyama had eight points in the period, while Murray-Boyles kept the Raptors within shouting distance with 10 points off the bench.
San Antonio cooled a bit in the second period but never let the Raptors gain their stride. Toronto was within 12 after Barrett’s two free throws at the 9:10 mark of the quarter, but the Spurs responded, forging a 12-3 spurt capped by a Barnes 3-pointer with six minutes to play to go up 55-33.
San Antonio led 69-50 at the break. Vassell and Castle paced San Antonio with 12 points each while Wembanyama scored 10 and took eight rebounds in the first half. Ingram’s 12 points before halftime led the visitors.
