Victor Wembanyama hits another milestone with 50-point game for the San Antonio Spurs
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Victor Wembanyama of the San Antonio Spurs battles for a loose ball in the first half at Frost Bank Center on Nov 13.
PHOTO: AFP
SAN ANTONIO – Victor Wembanyama knows he is a talented player, but even so, he did not expect his latest achievement on Nov 13 in the National Basketball Association (NBA).
The 20-year-old became the fourth-youngest player to score 50 points in an NBA game when he led the San Antonio Spurs to a 139-130 home win over the Washington Wizards.
The first overall pick in the 2023 draft rattled up his career-high 50 points in just 33 minutes and ended the game on 18-29 shooting with eight three-pointers – also a career high.
The Spurs centre, whose previous highest-scoring game was 40, was at a loss to explain his incredible performance.
“I’d love to tell you that you wake up a certain way or you feel really smooth during warmups, but at the end of the day, in NBA games, we got one game every other day,” he said, referring to the packed schedule.
“So every time we struggle to warm up, we have pain, you know, we sweat, we bleed on the court, so it’s really a minute-to-minute thing, it comes to 48 minutes every game.”
It was the third straight game in which Wembanyama had hit at least six threes.
The three players who scored 50 points at a younger age than the Frenchman are Brandon Jennings, LeBron James and Devin Booker. All of them were also aged 20 when they accomplished that feat.
The Spurs again won without coach Gregg Popovich. The team said that he had suffered a mild stroke earlier in November but is expected to make a full recovery.
Wembanyama was not the only player to reach the 50-point mark on Nov 13. Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 59 as the Milwaukee Bucks beat the Detroit Pistons 127-120 in overtime on their home court.
The Greek star shot 21 of 34 and had 14 rebounds and seven assists in what was the highest points tally by a player so far this season.
“As a leader, I keep reminding guys, don’t take moments for granted,” said Antetokounmpo.
“No matter who plays, we don’t give up and always have to find ways to win the game.”
The unbeaten Cleveland Cavaliers, meanwhile, made it 13 straight wins in the NBA with a 114-106 victory at the Philadelphia 76ers.
With the win, the Cavs became just the sixth team to start a season with a 13-0 record and the first since the Golden State Warriors in the 2015-16 season.
Darius Garland had a team-high 25 points, while Donovan Mitchell put up 23 points, along with 13 rebounds and nine assists.
Mitchell ended the game on fire, scoring 11 points in a 116-second spell in the fourth quarter.
Cleveland trailed 54-48 at the half but turned it on in the third quarter.
Yet it was a tight game until Mitchell made a 29-foot three-pointer with two minutes remaining to open up a seven-point lead.
He conceded that the 13th game in 22 days had been a battle.
“We all fought,” the guard said. “Biggest thing is, obviously, we played a lot of games and it’s going to test you.
“The streak is going to test you. These games are going to test you.
“We kept pushing, just continued to fight, continued to battle and we all did a great job.”
Sixers rookie Jared McCain stepped up with 34 points but it was not enough.
The Boston Celtics also continued their strong start to the season. Their 139-114 win at the Brooklyn Nets took them to 10-3.
Jayson Tatum scored 36 points, conjured 10 assists and grabbed nine rebounds as the reigning champions enjoyed a convincing victory.
After a loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the NBA Cup on Nov 12, the Celtics trailed by two after the first quarter but grabbed a five-point lead by the half and dominated from then on.
It was a strong all-round display from Boston, with Jaylen Brown producing 24 points and 12 rebounds, while Payton Pritchard had 23 points, eight assists and six rebounds off the bench. REUTERS, AFP
