The standoff was unbearable, and the two teams were neck and neck, or rather head to head, almost the entire match, in this Western Conference semi-final of rare intensity, between San Antonio and Minnesota last night. The NBA has had 19 changes of leader on the scoreboard, but what counts is being in front at the end, and in this game, it was the Minnesota Wolves who showed more know-how (102-104).
For Victor Wembanyama’s Spurs, finding themselves at this level of competition, when the air becomes thinner and the duels harder, is a first, and it showed in this fourth quarter where everything is often decided in the NBA. San Antonio ended up losing the showdown against a team from Minneapolis which is used to the playoffs and winning series.
However, Spurs had done everything to approach the final moments of the match in good conditions. Victor Wembanyama started by hitting three counterattacks in barely two minutes, including one on his compatriot Rudy Gobert, in a duel that had all the American media salivating in recent days.
Strength for Minnesota, speed for the Spurs
From the start, the tone was set: in Minnesota, strength, in San Antonio, speed. The Wolves are a strong team and the work of undermining the racket was carried out methodically, even if it meant exposing themselves to Wembanyama’s incredible blocking qualities. The Frenchman made 12, in the conference semi-final!
This is quite simply the first time in history that a basketball player has accumulated so many, in a playoff match. The bar of 10 had not been reached since 2012, and only 7 players had reached it until then.
Wembanyama also grabbed 15 rebounds and scored 11 points, achieving a triple double, the first of his career in the playoffs. His performance was remarkable in defense, following his unanimous vote as best defender of the regular season.
But it was more uneven, and even quite bad, in attack: the Frenchman posted a poor 29% success rate, but he was especially stubborn at 3 points in an evening without (0 out of 8). He also had four failures in five attempts in the last quarter.
“It’s my fault, I didn’t know how to use my energy in the right way offensively,” Wembanyama assumed after the match. My match was not good on my part, in what my team expects of me. If I had been better offensively, everything would have been different. HAS”
“I have no doubt that his stat sheet will be better in the future,” said Spurs coach Mitch Johnson.
San Antonio fails on the last possession
We didn’t think it was possible but the second half increased in intensity again. Wemby was sent to the ground by Naz Reid who had just suffered a block. He also slammed a dunk on Gobert’s head. But Minnesota knew perfectly how to place the debates on the terrain of power, which is more favorable to it. “We knew it would be physical,” analyzed Wembanyama.
The Wolves were able to count on their surprise guest, Anthony Edwards, their star who was injured but returned just in time for this meeting: 18 points as a substitute, in 25 minutes of play, including… 11 in the last quarter (at 5/7)!
His entire team was in tune, with six players with more than 12 points. Alongside him, the other Frenchman of the evening, Rudy Gobert, did what he does best: destroying opposing attacks. He only scored 7 points (3 of 7) but he grabbed 10 rebounds and made 4 steals.
The Spurs seemed to be left behind in the final minutes, but came back through force. They had one last possession, trailing by two points and seven seconds remaining.
Oddly, they didn’t take any timeouts, brought the ball up at full speed, and Champagnie’s 3-point attempt crashed against the circle. “They (the Wolves) Were not organized in defense and I thought we had enough time to get the ball back, explained coach Mitch Johnson. We didn’t raise the ball straight away but Julian (Champagnie) had a good shooting position. HAS”
By a few millimeters, San Antonio was winning. But those few millimeters made all the difference. The Spurs will host the Wolves again on Wednesday, in Texas, for a second round.
“We have to be better,” asserts Wemby. We must understand within 48 hours what we need to do better, and I have no doubt that we will get there. I trust us. “Everyone is already salivating.
