There was no rest for the weary as the travel-worn Spurs were right back out on the road after a one-game stop at home the night before. This was second time in a little over two weeks that the Spurs traveled from San Antonio to an East Coast game the next night, losing an hour in the process, but this time their opponent did not have a rest advantage, with the Hawks playing in Charlotte the night before. Instead, the Spurs picked up right where they left off last night: dominating an inferior opponent to the point that they could rest everyone in the fourth quarter.
Both teams looked a little off early, but the two Spurs visiting their hometown were feeling it. Devin Vassell scored 9 of the Spurs first 11 points on 3-4 shooting from three, and Stephon Castle added another to get the Spurs up 18-11 just under six minutes in. Victor Wembanyama came in and immediately made an impact defensively, and Castle continued getting what he wanted in the paint with the Hawks lacking any rim protectors. By the end of the quarter, the Spurs were up 32-19 on a 9-0 run, with their two Georgians combining for 21 of those points to single-handedly outscore Atlanta.
The Spurs continued to put it on the Hawks to open the second quarter, with Dylan Harper using his speed and finishing ability to get right by Atlanta’s leaky defense. Wemby was also cooking in his second stint on the floor, scoring 11 points in the period (it should have been 13, but his last bucket was ruled a charge even though it clearly wasn’t). Harrison Barnes finally broke through the glass ceiling to hit his first three-pointer in four games, and the Spurs had their highest lead so far when the halftime buzzer sounded, 68-44.
After four straight games of good third quarters, Mitch Johnson wasn’t about to let his team revert back to bad habits, so he called a timeout after they were outscored 7-2 to open the second half. They responded by attacking the rim more, and Vassell went back to doing some home cooking with a dunk and three. Wembanyama also brought his own spark off the bench with a couple of blocks, a three and highlight reel dunk, and soon the Spurs had stretched the lead back out to 26 on an 8-0 run. They continued to stretch the lead with Wemby clicking on all cylinders and found themselves up 30, 102-72, having won their fifth straight third quarter.
The fourth quarter was extended garbage time, although the starters got a couple more minutes first to stretch the lead as high as 38. The shorthanded Hawks had to keep playing rotation players, and they started chipping away at the lead a little against the Spurs’ third unit, but it was too little, too late. Lindy Waters and Jordan McLaughlin had a few timely buckets, and the Spurs won 126-98. It’s technically their second five-game winning streak of the season since the Cup Finals don’t count in the standings. The other came at the start of the season, and that was their first since 2019.
Up next: Sunday at Washington Wizards
If the Spurs win this game (and there’s no reason they shouldn’t), it will be their first time winning six straight games since the 2016-17 season, when they had two 9-game winning streaks.