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2026-27 · Regular season
Victor Wembanyama scores 40 with nine blocks in 25 minutes and joins Kareem and David Robinson as the Spurs win their ninth straight
Victor Wembanyama had 40 points, 11 rebounds and nine blocks in 25 minutes as the Spurs beat the Suns 122-96 for their ninth straight win, including five blocks in less than two minutes of the second quarter.
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Victor Wembanyama scored 40 points with 11 rebounds and nine blocks in 25 minutes on Monday night, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Phoenix Suns 122-96 for their ninth straight win.
He made 15 of his 19 shots, 2 of 3 from three and 8 of 10 free throws, and he did not play in the last 9:13 because the game was already decided. The Spurs are 9-2 after losing their first two games of the season.
It was his second game with at least 40 points, 10 rebounds and eight blocks in less than a week. On Wednesday against Dallas he had 52 points, 24 rebounds and eight blocks in 34 minutes. The NBA said he is now the third player since blocks became an official stat in 1973-74 with more than one such game, after Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and David Robinson, and the first to do it in only 25 minutes.
Wembanyama’s 40 points, 11 rebounds and nine blocks against Phoenix. Video posted by the NBA on X.
Five blocks in less than two minutes
Wembanyama scored 14 points in the first quarter, including a 26-foot three in the final minute that put San Antonio up 29-25. The game turned early in the second.
Between 10:06 and 8:13 of the second quarter, the play-by-play shows him blocking five shots: Ryan Dunn’s alley-oop, Jalen Green’s driving layup, two attempts by Oso Ighodaro and one by Dillon Brooks. In the same stretch he scored on an alley-oop and a putback dunk, and a 38-27 lead was 45-29 when he went to the bench at 7:40.
He added a sixth block on Brooks with 24.6 seconds left in the half. He had 22 points at halftime, and the Spurs led 61-46 after a 21-2 run. The NBA said he joined Alonzo Mourning, who did it twice, as the only players in the play-by-play era with more than one first half of at least 20 points and five blocks.
In the third quarter he scored 10 more, finishing with a three from the top with 31.3 seconds left that made it 93-68. He opened the fourth with three dunks and a layup in just over two minutes, plus two blocks on Collin Gillespie on one possession, and went to the bench with the Spurs up 104-73.
‘Meet me in the air’
One of his baskets started from beyond the free throw line. He took the ball near the three-point line on the move and finished with a long stride and a finger roll over two smaller Phoenix defenders.
Asked whether he thought about it in the middle of the play, Wembanyama said: “Yeah, I didn’t want these guys to get into my legs, so I figured since it was two smalls, I would just have them meet me in the air if they wanted to. But they didn’t.”
Wembanyama on the play that started beyond the free throw line. Video posted by the NBA on X.
Praise for Dylan Harper
Dylan Harper scored 14 of his 17 points in the third quarter, on 7-of-10 shooting overall, and the Spurs gave him the game ball. San Antonio was plus-30 in his 26 minutes, the same as in Wembanyama’s 25.
“When he gets to his game, when he gets to the spot, he’s unstoppable,” Wembanyama said of the second-year guard. “He’s that kind of player where only he can contain himself, you know. If he wants to take this leap so early, it’s great for us, but that’s early and that’s impressive. It’s amazing to see from the bench watching him do it.”
Wembanyama on Harper’s second season. Video posted by NBA TV on X.
37.8 points over four games
Over his last four games, Wembanyama has scored 52, 30, 29 and 40, an average of 37.8 points, with 56 rebounds and 20 blocks. In 11 games this season he is averaging 30.1 points, 11.9 rebounds and 4.4 blocks in 29.8 minutes and shooting 52.9% from the field.
De’Aaron Fox added 15 points, nine rebounds and six assists, and Julian Champagnie and Harrison Barnes scored 11 each. Devin Booker led Phoenix with 32 points on 10-of-17 shooting, but the Suns shot 39.3% and were outrebounded 55-35. Dillon Brooks finished with seven points on 3-of-14 shooting.
The Spurs play in Chicago on Wednesday. The Suns, 2-2 on a seven-game homestand, host the Clippers on Tuesday.
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