3-Point Woes Stifle San Antonio Spurs As They Fall Short to Houston Rockets, Record 17th Straight Loss
SAN ANTONIO — Pre-determining a "winnable" game for the San Antonio Spurs has been near impossible as of late.
Ever since Nov. 2, the youngest team in the NBA has won zero games. They narrowly avoided the online ridiculing that came with a winless 11th month — the fate the Detroit Pistons couldn't escape — but still fell short of any and all standards they had set for themselves.
Despite the horrific month they faced, however, the Spurs remained steadfast, hitting hit the court once again to face their in-state rival Houston Rockets on the road Monday night. But when all said and done, they put forth another losing effort.
Though effort was the key word.
Victor Wembanyama had himself a block party, tallying five by the end of the game to pair with the 15 points and 18 rebounds that made up his 11th career double-double. He performed well, finding his stroke early on while Malaki Branham served as a spark plug, nothing 13 of his own, but as a team, San Antonio was outplayed.
Houston welcomed back rookie forward Amen Thompson to the lineup after more than a month of missed time with a sprained ankle to round out a full roster that out-scored, out-rebounded and out-shot the Spurs. San Antonio shot just 12.2 percent from behind the arc as it fell 93-82 for a franchise-worst 17 straight losses.
Dec 11, 2023; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) reacts after a play during the second quarter against the San Antonio Spurs at Toyota Center.
© Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports
Right from the jump, Branham got things going. After Jeremy Sochan scored the Spurs' first bucket, he got to the rim for an And-1 layup to give the Spurs an early lead. But after not scoring for the first three minutes of game action, Houston found the bottom of the bucket and caught up quickly.
The Rockets took their first lead with 5:27 left in the first quarter, and from there, both teams went back and forth. Wembanyama tallied two blocks and multiple Rockets starters tallied a pair of makes each as the Spurs took a two-point lead to the second.
The second quarter featured more back-and-forth — though most of it was Rockets centered — as the Spurs struggled to keep a lead, which turned into playing from behind. Fred VanVleet, who led the way in scoring for Houston along with Alperen Sengun, tallied 16 points and five assists on the night and helped keep his team afloat in the second, notching five.
Branham continued to find the bucket, tallying 11 points, four rebounds and three assists through the first half, and as the second quarter wound down, so did the Rockets' lead. The home team was able to do enough to stay afloat, however, taking a four-point lead to intermission.
But the Spurs weren't done yet.
Devin Vassell and Wembanyama — who combined for 29 points on the night — got the scoring going for San Antonio right away, tying the game at 53 a piece with 10:15 to play in the third quarter.
That score held for over two minutes until Sengun, the Rockets' breakout center, notched his ninth point to kickstart a 6-0 run that led to a San Antonio timeout. And from there, Houston retook momentum and control.
Three botched plays in a row by the Spurs kept them off of the scoresheet. One was a missed cut-and-pass from Wembanyama, the second was a pass too-high for Vassell and the third was a pass too-low from Sochan out to the wing. All seemed to be trending negatively for the Spurs until a Wembanyama poster on Sengun silenced the crowd and brought them within four points.
After the Rockets responded with a 3-pointer, San Antonio tried to match, but its deep woes only continued to allow Houston to rebuild its cushion. The Rockets took advantage, and staved off the Spurs to keep them out of arm's reach, taking a seven point lead to the final period of play.
The fourth quarter saw more back-and-forth action, but as many times as the Spurs attempted to claw their way back, the Rockets answered with an array of 3-pointers, forced turnovers and made field goals to keep San Antonio at bay as it secured a 93-82 home victory.
With the loss, the Spurs fall to 3-19 on the season and now currently hold the record for most consecutive losses in franchise history, at 17. They'll look to build any kind of momentum at home beginning Wednesday when they host the In-Season Tournament champion Los Angeles Lakers in back-to-back matchups.
Wednesday and Friday's matchups will mark the first showdowns between LeBron James and Victor Wembanyama, which could give the 7-4 rookie a chance to showcase his talents on a national stage.
Tipoff from Frost Bank Center is set for 7 p.m. CST.
