Ultimately, Victor Wembanyama scored a career-high 52 points and grabbed a career-high 24 rebounds as the San Antonio Spurs held off the Dallas Mavericks 112-111 on Wednesday night at the Frost Bank Center.
As a result, the performance put Wembanyama in rare company. Specifically, he became only the second player since blocks began being tracked in 1974 to record at least 50 points, 20 rebounds and five blocks in a game.
Finally, Wembanyama sank the winning free throw with 24.2 seconds left, the last of his 52 points, after Dallas had fought back from a 19-point deficit. In the end, Kyrie Irving missed a final shot for the Mavericks as time ran out.
In fact, Wembanyama had 29 of his 52 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks by halftime, helping San Antonio to a 68-51 lead. As a result, he became the first player in 30 seasons to record at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in a single half, according to the Associated Press.
Overall, he shot 16 of 28 from the field and 19 of 23 from the free-throw line in 34 minutes, adding two assists and two steals. Meanwhile, he made his first 18 free throws of the night before missing three in a row late in the game.
Wembanyama 52 points in context
In addition, Dylan Harper added 21 points for San Antonio, Stephon Castle had 17 and De’Aaron Fox scored 10, while Wembanyama scored 52 points. Meanwhile, Irving led Dallas with 29 points, and Naji Marshall added 22 off the bench. Furthermore, P.J. Washington had 21 points and 10 rebounds, and Cooper Flagg contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds.
| Player | Team | Points | Rebounds |
|---|---|---|---|
| Victor Wembanyama | San Antonio Spurs | 52 | 24 |
| Kyrie Irving | Dallas Mavericks | 29 | — |
| Naji Marshall | Dallas Mavericks | 22 | — |
| Dylan Harper | San Antonio Spurs | 21 | — |
| P.J. Washington | Dallas Mavericks | 21 | 10 |
| Cooper Flagg | Dallas Mavericks | 19 | 10 |
Before Wembanyama scored 52 points, his previous career high was 50 points, set in 2024. In addition, the win was San Antonio’s sixth in a row and lifted the Spurs to 6-2, while Dallas fell to 4-4.
Also, Wembanyama’s 52 points followed a week of big scoring displays around the league, including Luka Doncic’s 45-point game for the Lakers and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander’s 43 for Oklahoma City. Elsewhere on Wednesday, the Pelicans ended the Grizzlies’ unbeaten start with a 135-134 overtime win.
Afterwards, Wembanyama praised San Antonio’s approach after scoring 52 points. “We did mostly the right thing, the most ambitious,” he told ESPN. “It was just relentless. We wanted it more tonight.”
