Balanced Spurs extend win streak to 5 against struggling Jazz

SAN ANTONIO – Dylan Harper scored 17 points to lead a balanced attack that saw all five San Antonio starters score in double figures, as the Spurs rolled to a 119-97 NBA home win over the swooning Utah Jazz on Nov 2.

The Spurs led by 16 points late in the first quarter, by 10 at half-time and by 25 after three periods despite Victor Wembanyama’s tepid offensive performance.

San Antonio cruised to the finish line to beat the Jazz for the second time in the past six days and extend their winning streak to five games. Wembanyama went to the bench two minutes into the fourth quarter with the rest of the Spurs starters soon sitting beside him in the rout.

Stephon Castle hit for 16 points for San Antonio, with Keldon Johnson scoring 15 off the bench and Wembanyama amassing a season-low tying 12 points along with 11 rebounds. Harrison Barnes chipped in 13 points, De’Aaron Fox added 12 and Devin Vassell tallied 11 for the Spurs.

Lauri Markkanen led all players with 22 points and rookie Darryn Peterson added 14 for Utah, who have dropped five consecutive games and six of their first seven outings. The Jazz shot just 35.4% from the floor.

The Spurs put their stamp on the game early on, eventually expanding their advantage to 16 points when Luke Kornet hit a reverse layup with 2min 15sec left in the period on the way to a 27-16 lead after 12 minutes of play.

The Jazz battled back in the second period, culling their deficit to a point on two occasions, the second of which came after a pair of free throws by Josh Okogie made it 37-36 with 5:34 to play until half-time.

San Antonio pushed their lead back to 13 points when Johnson hit a layup with 1:27 left. Another Johnson layup at the buzzer granted the Spurs a 59-49 advantage at the break.

Markkanen led all first-half scorers with 15 points, while Vassell and Harper amassed 11 points each to pace San Antonio.

Wembanyama scored San Antonio’s final six points of the third quarter, including a dunk off a lob assist by Fox with 3sec left to make it 94-69 heading into the final 12 minutes. REUTERS