Spurs Beat Mavericks 122–106 for First Win: Wembanyama Scores 23, Harper Adds 22 in Dallas
San Antonio outscored Dallas 30–17 in the fourth quarter at American Airlines Center to close out its first victory of the season, 122–106, after the Mavericks had erased a 14-point lead in the third.
The San Antonio Spurs have their first win of the season. San Antonio beat the Dallas Mavericks 122–106 on Saturday night at American Airlines Center, closing the game on a fourth quarter it won 30–17 after Dallas had wiped out a 14-point Spurs lead in the third. Victor Wembanyama led San Antonio with 23 points, seven rebounds and four blocks, and Dylan Harper scored 22, according to the game report carried by FOX 4. De'Aaron Fox and Stephon Castle added 19 points apiece.
The win kept San Antonio (1–2) from its first 0–3 start since 2008–09. The Spurs lost to Oklahoma City on Tuesday and to Houston in Austin on Friday before Saturday's turnaround in Dallas, in the second game of a back-to-back for both teams. San Antonio led 32–31 after one quarter and 68–60 at halftime, gave the lead back in a 29–24 third quarter, then opened the fourth on a 17–5 run in the first six minutes to put the game away.
Wembanyama's night built slowly and then all at once. He had scored only one point until midway through the second quarter, then scored on two alley-oop dunks within two minutes and finished the half with 12. San Antonio's work on the glass was the other separator: the Spurs grabbed 15 offensive rebounds and outscored Dallas 25–10 in second-chance points. Dallas, to its credit, scored 46 points in the paint in the first half — a franchise high for a first half in the play-by-play era, according to the Elias Sports Bureau as reported by FOX 4.
Dallas played short-handed in its home opener. Cooper Flagg, last season's Rookie of the Year, was out with a shoulder injury suffered during Friday's win at Indiana and will be reevaluated next week, and Kyrie Irving sat out the second night of the back-to-back — he returned this season after being sidelined for 19 months with a torn ACL. Rookie Sergio de Larrea led the Mavericks (1–2) with 21 points off the bench, going 3 of 4 from behind the arc, while Dallas' five starters combined for 50 points, topped by P.J. Washington's 12. Next up: the Spurs host Sacramento on Tuesday, and the Mavericks play at Miami on Monday.
