The San Antonio Spurs responded to their first loss in nearly three weeks with a dominant 131-91 victory over the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday night at Xfinity Mobile Arena.
Dylan Harper scored 22 points off the bench, and Victor Wembanyama added 10 points, eight rebounds and six blocks as San Antonio improved to 44-17. The win secured an 8-1 mark on the annual rodeo road trip, which began Feb. 10 with a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers.
The Western Conference contender never trailed and led by 49 points at the end of the third quarter. Two nights after seeing their 11-game winning streak snapped by the New York Knicks, the Spurs delivered one of their most complete performances of the season.
Devin Vassell matched Harper with 22 points and buried six of his eight attempts from 3-point range. San Antonio finished 18-for-45 from deep and shot 55% overall.
Stephon Castle added 15 points and 10 assists, while De’Aaron Fox contributed 11 points and seven assists. The visitors assisted on 36 of their 49 field goals and controlled the glass 56-40.
Harper scored 14 points in the first half as the Spurs built a 78-53 lead at the break. Carter Bryant’s 3-pointer extended the margin to 60-36 in the second quarter, drawing boos from the home crowd.
San Antonio played without Harrison Barnes, whose streak of 364 consecutive games ended due to a sore ankle. The absence did not slow the offense, which generated 50 points in the paint and 50 rebounds on the defensive end.
Philadelphia, now 33-28 and sixth in the Eastern Conference, struggled from the outset. The 76ers shot 35% from the field and 10-for-42 from beyond the arc.
Tyrese Maxey led the home side with 21 points but finished 8-for-19. The Sixers managed just 11 points in the third quarter, when the deficit ballooned out of reach.
Joel Embiid missed his second straight game with a strained right oblique as part of a scheduled three-game absence. Philadelphia was also without the suspended Paul George and Kelly Oubre Jr., who sat due to illness.
VJ Edgecombe exited in the first half after a hard fall on a 3-point attempt. The rookie did not return.
San Antonio’s defensive pressure forced 13 turnovers and converted them into transition opportunities. The Spurs also recorded 10 steals and 10 blocks, repeatedly disrupting drives and perimeter looks.
The result keeps the Spurs second in the West, three games behind Oklahoma City. Philadelphia remains 12.5 games behind conference-leading Detroit and has lost two straight.
San Antonio returns home Thursday to face the Pistons. The 76ers host Utah on Wednesday as they look to regroup amid mounting injuries.
