SAN ANTONIO — Coming off a thrilling win Friday night over Detroit, the Jazz faced off against another hot team in the NBA.

On Saturday night, Utah wasn’t phased by Victor Wembanyama’s presence and the Jazz held off the San Antonio star and the Spurs to come away with a 127-114 win on the road.

Over the past two weeks, Wembanyama has wreaked havoc against the rest of the league, notably handing the defending champions three losses.

Utah led by as much as 17 Saturday, but a late rally by San Antonio forced the Jazz to earn a back-to-back win in consecutive nights.

Lauri Markkanen and Keyonte George, who both continue to be one of the best scoring duos in the NBA, led the charge again for the Jazz. Markkanen poured in 29 points, while George added 28 points and six assists.

“Keyonte and Lauri, after the games they had last night, to step up the way they did again, you can’t say enough about those two and what they are doing for our program,” Jazz head coach Will Hardy said.

Jusuf Nurkic was effective, as well, finishing with 16 points and flirting with a triple-double, tallying seven rebounds and six assists.

The first quarter was a mixed bag for Utah. The team scored 32 points while shooting 75% from the field, but seven turnovers helped pave the way for the Spurs to drop 40 points in the quarter.

With no Ace Bailey in the lineup, Brice Sensabaugh got the nod in the starting unit and made an early impact, knocking down two quick shots. Sensabaugh wasn’t the only player to get some extra runs, though.

Isaiah Collier left the game early in the second quarter with a shoulder injury but returned in the second half. With Collier out, it allowed Walter Clayton Jr. and Cody Williams to make the most of the increased minutes.

Clayton looked confident and poised in his first minutes of action, making shots and setting up teammates. As such, the Jazz turned a double-digit deficit into a 9-point lead as part of a 25-5 run.

Williams added 8 points and six rebounds with his head coach praising his effort.

“Cody, I thought, gave us some spectacular minutes tonight,” Hardy said. “I thought defensively he was tremendous. A couple of big finishes around the rim.”

The momentum helped the Jazz take a 70-60 lead into the halftime break after holding San Antonio to just 20 points in the second quarter.

Utah continued to control the game in the third quarter, but San Antonio made a push in the fourth quarter to eventually tie the game up at 106-106. The Jazz withstood the push and showed composure to reclaim the lead.

Both Markkanen and George were vital to withstanding the Spurs’ late push, making big plays and knocking down key free throws down the stretch. Markkanen even skied for a putback dunk, and then on the next possession buried a 3-point shot to give the team a comfortable 9-point lead with two minutes to play.

“It’s not easy to do that, especially on the road,” Hardy said. “We’ve seen this a bunch of times this year where in close games our team is not afraid. They don’t look scattered, they’re very connected and they are stepping up and making a lot of big plays. I’m so proud of our group and I want our guys and fans to enjoy this win.”

Clayton Jr. had his “best game as a pro,” Hardy said. Clayton was big off the bench for the Jazz, totaling 17 points on a perfect 6-for-6 shooting. Clayton added five assists in the win.

“A lot of big shots, played with a ton of force, had some big defensive plays,” Hardy said. “Showed some physicality on the ball defensively. It’s been a tricky start to the season for Walt because of his minutes and opportunity.”

Wembanyama made his first start for the Spurs since returning from injury Saturday, coming off the bench in the team’s previous seven games. In his return to the starting lineup, Wembanyama scored 32 points and blocked five shots.

“Wembanyama turns in a good stat line from a points standpoint, but I thought that (Nurkic), his physicality, he did a really good job one-on-one with Wembanyama,” Hardy said.

The Jazz will be back at home for their final game of 2025 when they take on the Boston Celtics on Tuesday.

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