Game ID: 22300891
San Antonio Spurs @ Houston Rockets
Tuesday, March 5, 2024 at 8:00 PM ET
Toyota Center, Houston, TX
Q1 Q2 Q3 Q4 Final
HOU 26 21 33 34 114SAS 21 32 24 24 101
HOU vs SAS ScoutingHOU vs SAS Scouting
Welcome to the scouting desk. The coffee is cold, the film is play-by-play, and somebody has to explain what happened.
Every game has a hinge — a stretch where it was decided, usually while everyone was watching something else. Start where the evidence lives: the Lineups' face-offs say which five actually won their minutes; the Possessions ledger says who ran ahead of the night's own pace; the Shot Chart says where the points really came from, which is rarely where the highlights were. When all three agree, that is the story. When they don't — that is why this desk has a chair.
HOU availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restBACK VanVleet back 2/22 after 5, 33 min since (91% of 37)
BACK Whitmore back 2/22 after 3, 22 min since (120% of 19)
BACK Landale back 2/10 after 2, 12 min since (91% of 14)
NEW Thompson 22 to 33 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 2/27 · 1 day's restOUT Tate missed 2 since 2/23, returns tonight: 2 min (16% of 16)
BACK VanVleet back 2/22 after 5, 35 min since (95% of 37)
BACK Whitmore back 2/22 after 3, 21 min since (110% of 19)
BACK Landale back 2/22 after 2, 7 min since (50% of 14)
NEW Thompson 22 to 31 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 2/29 · 1 day's restBACK VanVleet back 2/22 after 5, 35 min since (96% of 37)
BACK Whitmore back 2/22 after 3, 19 min since (104% of 19)
BACK Tate back 2/27 after 2, 2 min since (16% of 16)
BACK Landale back 2/22 after 2, 5 min since (39% of 14)
HOU availability going into 3/02 · 1 day's restBACK VanVleet back 2/22 after 5, 36 min since (98% of 37)
BACK Whitmore back 2/22 after 3, 21 min since (112% of 19)
BACK Tate back 2/27 after 2, 2 min since (16% of 16)
BACK Landale back 2/22 after 2, 6 min since (48% of 14)
HOU availability going into 3/05 · 2 days' restOUT Tate missed 2 since 2/29, out tonight
NEW Smith Jr. 32 to 38 min over the last 5
HOU availability going into 3/06 · back-to-backOUT Tate missed 3 since 2/29, returns tonight: 6 min (36% of 16)
HOU availability going into 3/08 · 1 day's restBACK Tate back 2/27 after 2, 4 min since (26% of 16)
HOU availability going into 3/10 · 1 day's restOUT Je. Green missed 2 since 3/06, returns tonight: 11 min (63% of 17)
BACK Tate back 3/06 after 3, 6 min since (36% of 16)
HOU availability going into 3/12 · 1 day's restOUT Tate missed 2 since 3/08, returns tonight: 13 min (82% of 16)
BACK Je. Green back 3/10 after 2, 11 min since (63% of 17)
SAS availability going into 2/25 · 1 day's restOUT Graham missed 2 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Barlow missed 4 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Cissoko missed 25 since 1/02, out tonight
SAS availability going into 2/27 · 1 day's restOUT Graham missed 3 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Barlow missed 5 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Cissoko missed 26 since 1/02, out tonight
SAS availability going into 2/29 · 1 day's restOUT Graham missed 4 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Barlow missed 6 since 2/12, out tonight
OUT Cissoko missed 27 since 1/02, out tonight
SAS availability going into 3/03 · 2 days' restOUT Graham missed 5 since 2/22, out tonight
OUT Barlow missed 7 since 2/12, returns tonight: 0 min (3% of 13)
OUT Cissoko missed 28 since 1/02, returns tonight: 0 min (3% of 12)
SAS availability going into 3/05 · 1 day's restOUT Graham missed 6 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Barlow back 3/03 after 7, 0 min since (3% of 13)
BACK Cissoko back 3/03 after 28, 0 min since (3% of 12)
SAS availability going into 3/07 · 1 day's restOUT Graham missed 7 since 2/22, out tonight
BACK Barlow back 3/03 after 7, 0 min since (3% of 13)
BACK Cissoko back 3/03 after 28, 0 min since (3% of 12)
SAS availability going into 3/09 · 1 day's restOUT Graham missed 8 since 2/22, returns tonight: 11 min (83% of 14)
OUT Cissoko missed 2 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Barlow back 3/03 after 7, 7 min since (54% of 13)
NEW Vassell 33 to 39 min over the last 5
SAS availability going into 3/11 · 1 day's restOUT Wembanyama missed 2 since 3/07, returns tonight: 31 min (106% of 30)
OUT Cissoko missed 3 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Graham back 3/09 after 8, 11 min since (83% of 14)
BACK Barlow back 3/03 after 7, 15 min since (115% of 13)
NEW Vassell 33 to 38 min over the last 4
SAS availability going into 3/12 · back-to-backOUT Osman missed 2 since 3/09, out tonight
OUT Cissoko missed 4 since 3/05, out tonight
BACK Wembanyama back 3/11 after 2, 31 min since (106% of 30)
BACK Graham back 3/09 after 8, 11 min since (83% of 14)
BACK Barlow back 3/03 after 7, 13 min since (100% of 13)
I Know — the desk, before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 113, shooting 39 percent and 32 from three, 26 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 22 and VanVleet at 19 a game. Without Tate (2 straight). 2 days' rest. San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 116 a night and allowing 118, shooting 49 percent and 42 from three, 19 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 25 and Vassell at 21 a game. One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the arc, San Antonio at 42 percent from three to Houston's 32 and the line, where Houston takes 26 free throws a game to San Antonio's 19. Call it Houston 116, San Antonio 112, San Antonio keeping it close.
2/25 vs OKC 110-123 — HOU notes
HOU lost 110-123. HOU shot 41% (38 of 93) to OKC's 47%, 16 of 41 from three, and went to the line 23 times to OKC's 15 — 18 points from the stripe to their 14. HOU turned it over 18 times to OKC's 9, and OKC turned those into 12 steals. Smith Jr. led with 20 (6 of 15, 4 of 9 from three); VanVleet added 20, Sengun 19. Q1 was theirs, 34-31, but the other 3 periods went 92-76 against them. They led by as many as 16. Brooks's -20 in 33 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/27 @ OKC 95-112 — HOU notes
HOU lost 95-112. HOU shot 39% (37 of 95) to OKC's 47%, 9 of 39 from three. Sengun led with 23 (8 of 13, 7 of 12 at the line); Smith Jr. added 18, Ja. Green 16. Q1 was theirs, 29-28, but the other 3 periods went 84-66 against them. VanVleet's -17 in 36 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/29 @ PHX 105-110 — HOU notes
HOU lost 105-110. HOU took 10 more shots (99 to 89), fed by 19 offensive rebounds, but shot 33% to PHX's 40%, 11 of 45 from three, and got to the line 31 times to PHX's 37. Ja. Green led with 34 (10 of 28, 7 of 17 from three, 7 of 7 at the line); VanVleet added 21, Whitmore 14. Q4 was theirs, 30-24, the deficit cut from 11 to 5, but the other 3 periods went 86-75 against them. Sengun's -17 in 23 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/02 @ PHX 118-109 — HOU notes
HOU won 118-109. HOU shot 44% (42 of 96) to PHX's 46%, 16 of 42 from three. HOU turned it over 12 times to PHX's 19. Ja. Green led with 34 (12 of 23, 6 of 12 from three); VanVleet added 24, Sengun 21. The hinge was Q1, 38-19: from level to 19 ahead. Brooks was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
3/05 vs SAS 114-101 — HOU notes
HOU won 114-101. HOU shot 47% (49 of 105) to SAS's 44%, 9 of 34 from three. HOU turned it over 5 times to SAS's 18. Sengun led with 45 (19 of 32, 2 of 3 from three, 5 of 7 at the line); Ja. Green added 23, VanVleet 21. The hinge was Q4, 34-24: a lead of 3 became 13. HOU trailed 47-53 at the half and won the second half 67-48. VanVleet was the night's best plus/minus at +27.
3/06 vs LAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 108 a night and allowing 111, shooting 41 percent and 30 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 24 and Sengun at 23 a game. Without Tate (3 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. The Clippers come in 2-3 over their last five, scoring 111 a night and allowing 111, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 21 free throws a game; Leonard at 24 and George at 22 a game. Without Westbrook (2 straight), Tucker (3 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Houston has been plus-1 a night and the Clippers minus-3. Call it Houston 113, the Clippers 112, the Clippers keeping it close.
3/08 @ POR — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Portland comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 112 a night and allowing 109, shooting 47 percent and 38 from three, 19 free throws a game; Simons at 25 and Grant at 15 a game. It has won the glass by 4 a night. Without Sharpe (24 straight), Ayton (4 straight), Henderson (7 straight). One day's rest. Houston comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 110 a night and allowing 111, shooting 42 percent and 31 from three, 21 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 24 and Sengun at 24 a game. One day's rest.
So: Portland wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, Portland giving it away 17 times a game to Houston's 10 and the arc, Portland at 38 percent from three to Houston's 31. Call it Portland 112, Houston 111, Houston keeping it close.
3/10 @ SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Sacramento comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 118 a night and allowing 120, shooting 48 percent and 34 from three, 17 free throws a game; Fox at 32 and Monk at 22 a game. It has won the glass by 8 a night. 2 days' rest. Houston comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 110, shooting 44 percent and 34 from three, 22 free throws a game; Ja. Green at 27 and Sengun at 23 a game. Without Je. Green (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Sacramento wins, and the game turns on the glass, where Sacramento has been plus-8 a night and Houston plus-1 and the defense, Houston allowing 110 a night to Sacramento's 120. Call it Sacramento 116, Houston 115, Houston keeping it close.
3/12 @ SAS — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 42 from three, 20 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 23 and Vassell at 22 a game. Without Osman (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 109, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Sengun at 24 and Ja. Green at 24 a game. Without Tate (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, San Antonio giving it away 14 times a game to Houston's 9 and the arc, San Antonio at 42 percent from three to Houston's 37. Call it Houston 115, San Antonio 113, San Antonio keeping it close.
2/25 @ UTA 109-128 — SAS notes
SAS lost 109-128. SAS shot 46% (42 of 91) to UTA's 51%, 13 of 31 from three. Vassell led with 27 (10 of 19, 4 of 8 from three); Wembanyama added 22, Z. Collins 17. Q3 was theirs, 35-30, the deficit cut from 24 to 19, but the other 3 periods went 98-74 against them. Sochan's -21 in 29 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/27 @ MIN 105-114 — SAS notes
SAS lost 105-114. SAS shot 48% (39 of 82) to MIN's 46%, 16 of 41 from three. SAS turned it over 22 times to MIN's 14, and MIN turned those into 16 steals. Vassell led with 21 (9 of 18, 2 of 8 from three); Johnson added 20, Wembanyama 17. Q4 was theirs, 38-29, the deficit cut from 18 to 9, but the other 3 periods went 85-67 against them. Osman's -16 in 22 minutes was the worst on the floor.
2/29 vs OKC 132-118 — SAS notes
SAS won 132-118. SAS shot 53% (48 of 91) to OKC's 49%, 19 of 39 from three. Vassell led with 28 (12 of 20, 3 of 6 from three); Wembanyama added 28, Sochan 21. The hinge was Q4, 34-22: a lead of 2 became 14. Jones was the night's best plus/minus at +21.
3/03 vs IND 117-105 — SAS notes
SAS won 117-105. SAS shot 54% (46 of 85) to IND's 44%, 10 of 25 from three. Wembanyama led with 31 (11 of 17, 3 of 4 from three, 6 of 7 at the line); Branham added 18, Vassell 17. The hinge was Q1, 26-16: from level to 10 ahead. Wembanyama was the night's best plus/minus at +19.
3/05 @ HOU 101-114 — SAS notes
SAS lost 101-114. SAS shot 44% (38 of 87) to HOU's 47%, 12 of 36 from three. SAS turned it over 18 times to HOU's 5, and HOU turned those into 15 steals. Vassell led with 22 (9 of 19, 1 of 5 from three); Branham added 20, Johnson 18. Q2 was theirs, 32-21, turning a 5-point deficit into a 6-point lead, but the other 3 periods went 93-69 against them. Sochan's -17 in 34 minutes was the worst on the floor.
3/07 @ SAC — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Sacramento comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 118, shooting 49 percent and 36 from three, 16 free throws a game; Fox at 30 and Monk at 20 a game. It has won the glass by 7 a night. Second night of a back-to-back. San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 116, shooting 49 percent and 41 from three, 18 free throws a game; Vassell at 23 and Wembanyama at 22 a game. One day's rest.
So: Sacramento wins, and the game turns on the turnovers, San Antonio giving it away 17 times a game to Sacramento's 13 and the arc, San Antonio at 41 percent from three to Sacramento's 36. Call it Sacramento 118, San Antonio 114, San Antonio keeping it close.
3/09 @ GSW — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
Golden State comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 113 a night and allowing 112, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 16 free throws a game; Curry at 21 and Kuminga at 19 a game. It has won the glass by 5 a night. One day's rest. San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 116, shooting 50 percent and 42 from three, 18 free throws a game; Vassell at 24 and Wembanyama at 22 a game. One day's rest.
So: Golden State wins, and the game turns on the arc, San Antonio at 42 percent from three to Golden State's 33 and the glass, where Golden State has been plus-5 a night and San Antonio minus-1. Call it Golden State 118, San Antonio 114, San Antonio keeping it close.
3/11 vs GSW — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 3-2 over its last five, scoring 121 a night and allowing 116, shooting 50 percent and 45 from three, 21 free throws a game; Vassell at 24 and Wembanyama at 23 a game. Without Wembanyama (2 straight). One day's rest. Golden State comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 114 a night and allowing 117, shooting 46 percent and 33 from three, 19 free throws a game; Kuminga at 19 and Curry at 18 a game. Without Looney (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: San Antonio wins, and the game turns on the arc, San Antonio at 45 percent from three to Golden State's 33. Call it San Antonio 118, Golden State 116, Golden State keeping it close.
3/12 vs HOU — I Know, the desk before tip-off
Written before tip-off, from the five games each side brought in.
San Antonio comes in 2-3 over its last five, scoring 115 a night and allowing 115, shooting 48 percent and 42 from three, 20 free throws a game; Wembanyama at 23 and Vassell at 22 a game. Without Osman (2 straight). Second night of a back-to-back. Houston comes in 4-1 over its last five, scoring 117 a night and allowing 109, shooting 47 percent and 37 from three, 21 free throws a game; Sengun at 24 and Ja. Green at 24 a game. Without Tate (2 straight). One day's rest.
So: Houston wins, on the road, and the game turns on the turnovers, San Antonio giving it away 14 times a game to Houston's 9 and the arc, San Antonio at 42 percent from three to Houston's 37. Call it Houston 115, San Antonio 113, San Antonio keeping it close.
Who is who
the initials in the Players column
SASBW B. Wesley
CO C. Osman
DV D. Vassell
JC J. Champagnie
JS J. Sochan
KJ K. Johnson
MB M. Branham
TJ T. Jones
VW V. Wembanyama
ZC Z. Collins
HOUAH A. Holiday
AS A. Sengun
AT A. Thompson
CW C. Whitmore
DB D. Brooks
FV F. VanVleet
JG J. Green
JL J. Landale
JS J. Smith Jr.
JG Ja. Green
JG Je. Green
SAS/HOU the team itself, not a player
-- the feed named nobody
What
What happened
the codes in the Events column
M2 / M3 made 2 / made 3
X2 / X3 missed 2 / missed 3
FT / X1 free throw made / missed
AST assist
OR / DR offensive / defensive rebound
STL steal
BLK block
TO turnover
FL foul
OF offensive foul — ends the possession
VIOL violation
JUMP jump ball
TM timeout
IR instant replay
HE heave at the buzzer, filed to the team
END the clock ran out, ball in hand
Where
Where a shot came from
the middle field of M3.LW.25
RM at the rim inside 4 ft
RC right corner
RW right wing
SO straight on
LW left wing
LC left corner
M3.LW.25 made 3, left wing, 25 ft
X2.RM.01 missed 2, at the rim, 1 ft
When
When it happened
the Offset column
one number per event, in the Events order:
whole seconds from the start of the
possession to that event
Events FL X3.RC.23 OR M2.RM.01
Offset 0 18 22 24
the foul opens the possession at 0s;
the putback ends it at 24s, which is
the possession's own Dur
Sengun sets career mark with 45 points as Rockets down Spurs 114-101
HOUSTON -- — Alperen Sengun scored a career-high 45 points with a season-best 16 rebounds to lead the Houston Rockets to a 114-101 win over the San Antonio Spurs Tuesday night.
Sengun, who is in his third NBA season, also set a career mark with five steals and had three assists and a block, outplaying rookie French phenom and No. 1 pick Victor Wembanyama . He had 10 points, 11 rebounds and seven blocks as San Antonio’s two-game winning streak ended.
“He was a beast,” Jalen Green said. “He was amazing, that's the Alpi I know.”
Sengun is the fifth player since 1973-74, when steals started being tracked, to have at least 45 points, 15 rebounds and five steals in a game. He joins Anthony Davis , who did it two times, Joel Embiid , James Harden and John Drew. At 21 years and 224 days old, Sengun is the youngest player to record such a line.
Sengun admitted that he was extra motivated to have a good showing against Wembanyama Tuesday after scoring 15 points and nine rebounds in the last meeting with the Spurs.
“Yeah of course,” he said. “I didn’t play that good last game against him I can say. I didn't see that many double teams today. They just left me one-on-one with Wemby, so I just did what I do.”
The Spurs scored five points, with a 3 from Keldon Johnson , to cut the lead to 92-88 with about eight minutes left.
Houston then used a 7-2 run to make it 99-92 midway through the quarter. Wembanyama had two turnovers in that stretch to help Houston pad the lead. The second one came on a steal by Sengun and he drove down the court before making a nifty behind-the-back pass to Cam Whitmore , who finished with a two-handed dunk.
The Rockets were up by 8 late in the fourth before using another 7-2 spurt to make it 114-101. Sengun capped his big night by scoring Houston’s last five points, ending with a 3-pointer.
Jalen Green added 23 points with 10 assists for Houston and Fred VanVleet had 21 points.
The Spurs were led by Devin Vassell , who had 22 points and Branham had 20 points off the bench.
“They were physical from the get-go until the end of the game,” San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. “The came after it that way, they played that way. They put us in the mud, we didn't respond to it very well and you got the outcome.”
San Antonio’s Jeremy Sochan tripped Amen Thompson while he was on the ground with about 5 ½ minutes left in the third quarter. Thompson got up and immediately pushed Sochan and the two players shoved each other several times before officials and players got between them to break things up.
Sochan received a flagrant 1 foul for tripping Thompson and both players were given technical fouls for the ensuring shoving match.
Houston used a 7-1 run after that to take a 72-67 lead.
Malaki Branham made a 3 for the Spurs after that but Houston scored the next eight points, highlighted by a 3 from VanVleet, to extend the lead to 10.
The Spurs scored the final seven points of the quarter, capped by another 3 from Branham, to get within 80-77 entering the fourth.
UP NEXT
Spurs: Visit Sacramento Thursday night.
Rockets: Host the Los Angeles Clippers Wednesday night.