The San Antonio Spurs dethroned the Portland Trail Blazers 112-101 without stars Victor Wembanyama and Stephon Castle on Wednesday night.
De’Aaron Fox led the Spurs (61-19) with 25 points and has them with their best record since 2017, when they last appeared in the Western Conference finals during a 22-year postseason run that included five NBA championships.
Keldon Johnson added 20 points, and rookie forward Carter Bryant added a season-high 17.
On the other hand, Deni Avdija had 27 points, and Scoot Henderson added 20 for Portland, who have lost two straight after a three-game winning streak.
The Trail Blazers (40-40) remain ninth in the West, just 2 1/2 games ahead of Golden State (37-42) heading into the final weekend of the regular season.
The Spurs had six players in double figures to offset the absence of the NBA’s past two Rookie of the Year winners.
Wembanyama bruised a rib on Monday, and Castle is out with right knee soreness.
Meanwhile, the French superstar needs to play at least 20 minutes in one more game to reach the league-required minimum of 65 games for award eligibility.
San Antonio got off to a sluggish start, missing their first three shots and committing a turnover in the opening two minutes.
Fox took over as he scored 10 points on 4-for-4 shooting in the first 4:13 to stake the Spurs to a 12-8 lead.
The Spurs closed the third quarter on a 13-2 spurt to expand a four-point lead and roll to their second straight victory.
Both teams will play home games on Friday night: the Trail Blazers host the Clippers, while the Spurs host the Mavericks.
