Basketball
Wembanyama erupts for 52 points and 24 rebounds as Spurs edge Mavericks 112-111
Some nights a player does not just win a game — he redraws the boundaries of what seems possible. On Wednesday night at Frost Bank Center, Victor Wembanyama delivered the greatest performance of his young career — 52 points, 24 rebounds and eight blocks — to drag the San Antonio Spurs past the Dallas Mavericks 112-111, a sixth straight win. At 22, the Frenchman joined Wilt Chamberlain in a club nobody had entered since 1961.
What next?
With the win, the Spurs move to 6-2 and extend their winning streak to six — a start to the season that is beginning to look like a statement of intent. Wembanyama is now averaging 25.7 points, 10.7 rebounds and 4.0 blocks per game. And there is no time to breathe: tonight, San Antonio travels to Sacramento to face the Kings. After a night like that, the whole NBA will be watching to see whether the alien can do it again, 48 hours later.
An impact the box score can barely hold
Beyond the stat line, the number that best sums up the night is plus/minus: San Antonio was plus-23 with Wembanyama on the floor, and minus-22 during the roughly 14 minutes he rested. Without him, the Spurs shot 39 percent and missed almost everything from three. With him, everything opened up. He also played through illness, dealing with a virus and after rolling his ankle in the fourth quarter — which makes the performance even harder to believe. His 52 points erase his previous career high of 50, set against Washington in 2024, and his 24 rebounds are a career best too. Only Wilt Chamberlain, in 1961, had ever put up 50 points, 24 rebounds and eight blocks in a single game.
Dallas fights back, Wembanyama answers
San Antonio led by 19 early in the third quarter and the game looked over. Dallas, though, refused to fold. Fuelled by their outside shooting, the Mavericks pulled within two with eight minutes left, then took a 103-100 lead on a P.J. Washington three-pointer with 5:38 remaining. That is when Wembanyama took the game over: a putback layup with 1:47 left for 111-108 — his new career high — then the deciding free throw with 24.2 seconds left. Kyrie Irving had the final possession for Dallas, but his turnaround fadeaway with three seconds left missed. Final score: 112-111.
A first half already historic
From the opening tip, Wembanyama set the tone with a thunderous two-handed jam. By halftime his line already read 29 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks: he became the first player in NBA history to record at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in a single half. San Antonio led comfortably and the game looked done. The Frenchman finished 16-of-28 from the field with 19-of-23 at the free-throw line — rare efficiency for a 7-foot-4 player who spends so much time away from the rim. Most striking was his defensive grip: eight blocks, two steals, and a paint that became a no-go zone for Dallas.