San Antonio Spurs (40-17) beat Sacramento Kings (12-46) 139-122 at home on Saturday, February 21 in a shootout, with the two teams combining for 261 points.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Spurs had the better start, winning the first 35-31 to lead by 4 after one. The Spurs kept the pressure on with a 38-34 second quarter, carrying a 8-point lead into halftime.
The Spurs won the third 32-29 to create some separation, taking a 11-point lead into the fourth. The Spurs took the fourth 34-28; the Spurs finished the job for a 139-122 regulation win.
What decided it
The Spurs got more from their shots, finishing at 62.2% effective field-goal shooting compared with 51.6% for the Kings. The Spurs grabbed 32.4% of their own misses, while the Kings recovered 21.7%. That shooting gap supplied the clearest edge.
The Kings did win one battle, ball security: TOV% of 11 against 15.3. The Spurs made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 110 possessions per team, the Spurs produced 126.2 points per 100 possessions to 110.7 for the Kings.
The Spurs' reserves also made a difference, outscoring the opposing bench 59-39.
Who made the difference
Victor Wembanyama was the game's biggest individual force for SAS: 28 pts, 15 reb, 6 ast, 4 blk on 11-20 shooting. His Game Score of 28.3 led everyone. His team was +32 with him on the floor.
DeMar DeRozan led the Kings with 20 pts, 1 reb, 5 ast on 5-13 shooting, good for a 16.6 Game Score.
Victor Wembanyama (28 pts, 15 reb, 6 ast) and Maxime Raynaud (16 pts, 12 reb, 3 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The result fit the pre-game Win Meter, which gave the Spurs about a 94% chance.
Across the last 5 meetings in our records, San Antonio Spurs lead 3-2.
The Spurs are now 40-17, and the Kings are 12-46. The Spurs last five before this game: W-W-W-W-W.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.