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04/26 19:12 CDT Wembanyama returns from concussion and Spurs beat Blazers
114-93 to take 3-1 series lead
Wembanyama returns from concussion and Spurs beat Blazers 114-93 to take 3-1
series lead
By ANNE M. PETERSON
AP Sports Writer
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) --- Victor Wembanyama had 27 points, 11 rebounds and seven
blocks in his return from a concussion and the San Antonio Spurs took a 3-1
lead in their first-round series against the Portland Trail Blazers with a
114-93 victory on Sunday.
De'Aaron Fox added 28 points for the Spurs, who will return home for Game 5 on
Tuesday night.
The Spurs announced about an hour before the game that Wembanyama, the 7-foot-4
Defensive Player of the Year, would play after clearing the league's concussion
protocol.
After the game, he indicated that the way his return to play was handled was
"very disappointing" but emphasized that he was treated well by the Spurs'
medical staff. He would not elaborate, saying he did not want to be a
distraction.
The Spurs trailed the Blazers by 17 points at the half, but the game was
knotted at 74 going into the fourth quarter. Fox and Keldon Johnson hit
back-to-back 3-pointers to put the Spurs up 90-77 with 7:14 left.
Johnson's dunk with 4:31 remaining made it 101-81 for San Antonio and all but
sealed the win.
"We need to find the answers before having our back against the wall,"
Wembanyama said about the second-half comeback. "But that also shows the
strength of our team in adversity. We stick together. We get closer to each
other, we feed off of each other's energy."
Deni Avdija led the Trail Blazers with 26 points. There was tense moment with
2:13 left when Avdija and Stephon Castle exchanged shoves. They were given
offsetting technical fouls.
"You can be tough, you can be, you know, physical, but there's a level of
disrespect that I'm not gonna accept," Avdija said about the dustup.
Wembanyama sustained a concussion in the first half of San Antonio's 106-103
loss on Tuesday and was unavailable Friday night for Game 3. But the Spurs
rallied in the third quarter and won 120-108 to take the series lead.
Wembanyama, who was listed as questionable going into Sunday's game, started
and drew gasps from the crowd at the Moda Center with an emphatic dunk with
9:58 to go in the first half.
Portland went ahead 45-28 in the first half on an 18-3 run. Robert Williams III
dunked before a pair of quick 3-pointers from Jerami Grant and Scoot Henderson.
Avdija capped the run with a fadeaway jumper.
The Blazers led by as many as 19 in the half and were ahead 58-41 at the break.
Stephon Castle, who had 33 points in San Antonio's Game 3 win, appeared to
injure his left hand in the first half but returned.
The Spurs went on a 13-0 run to open the second half and closed the gap to
58-54 as the Blazers went cold. Devin Vassell's jumper with 4:38 tied it at 62
for the Spurs. He hit another to put San Antonio in front.
"I think there's no useless drama in between us," Wembanyama said. "We thrive
when we do the invisible efforts that benefit others. There's no jealousy.
There's nobody who cares about their stat line. So it's our greatest strength."
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
