The Library Media — Sports · Sports Desk
Spurs Rout Warriors 123-85 for 11th Straight Victory
By Adrian Cole
SAN ANTONIO, Texas — Stephon Castle scored a season-high 32 points as the San Antonio Spurs overwhelmed the Golden State Warriors 123-85 on Friday night at Frost Bank Center, extending their winning streak to 11 games.
Victor Wembanyama finished with 12 points and 12 rebounds, while Keldon Johnson added 18 points for San Antonio. The Spurs improved to 11-2 and moved to 2-0 in NBA Cup West Group C.
Golden State fell to 8-5 and 1-1 in NBA Cup play while playing without Stephen Curry, who is sidelined for at least two weeks with a right oblique tear suffered Wednesday in Houston, Texas.
San Antonio took control immediately, opening the game on an 18-0 run over the first 4:29. According to Reuters, it was the most consecutive points scored to begin a game since the NBA began tracking play-by-play data in the 1996-97 season.
The Warriors did not recover from the opening surge. Golden State shot 5-for-25 in the first quarter and trailed 38-14 after one period.
The Spurs continued to build the margin in the second quarter, taking a 63-33 lead into halftime. San Antonio pushed its advantage to 43 points in the third quarter after Harrison Barnes made a 3-pointer with 57 seconds remaining in the period.
The game was sufficiently decided that all five Spurs starters had left the floor for the night by the 1:58 mark of the third quarter.
Golden State scored 27 points in the third quarter and 25 in the fourth but never meaningfully closed the gap. The Warriors finished with just two double-figure scorers: L.J. Cryer, who scored 20 points, and Charles Bassey, who added 11.
San Antonio’s dominant start set the tone for a wire-to-wire victory and another step in its 11-game winning streak. The Spurs’ 38 points in the opening quarter and 63-point halftime total left Golden State facing a deficit it could not overcome.
The Warriors, meanwhile, continued without Curry as his absence began with a right oblique injury that will keep him sidelined for at least two weeks.
Adrian Cole
NBA, The Library Media
From The Library — the estate of our family.
