Spurs outlast Jazz to extend win streak to three

Following an easy win over the lowly Kings, the Spurs faced a tougher foe in Utah Wednesday night, narrowly escaping with a 117-111 victory to extend their winning streak to three.

With both Lauri Markkanen and Jaren Jackson Jr. out with injuries, the Jazz’ frontcourt was severely undermanned. The offensive burden was thus placed on Keytone George, who came out swinging. The shifty guard scored 10 quick points, helping the home team build a double-digit lead early in the game. San Antonio’s defense left much to be desired, often slow on closeouts and switches, giving Utah good looks at the basket.

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On the other end, the Jazz prevented Wemby from getting easy buckets by packing the paint. Still, it was only a matter of time before the big fella got loose, as the Spurs generated easy dunks for Wemby on the fast break and through pick-and-roll actions. San Antonio also ran successful inverted sets that used Wemby as the ball handler, taking advantage of his vision and the slashing ability of their guards.

Even so, the Jazz answered every time the Spurs went on a run. San Antonio was only able to either tie the game or build a small two-possession lead, and the perimeter defense was not good enough to contain Utah’s explosive backcourt. Even after scoring on three consecutive possessions in crunch time, the Spurs allowed the Jazz to tie the game. With four seconds remaining in regulation, San Antonio had a chance at a buzzer-beater, but some slight confusion resulted in a desperate heave that gave me PTSD from the ending of game 2 of the finals.

Overtime wasn’t much prettier from either side. Both teams had several disjointed possessions that somehow still ended up in the basket, and the Spurs pulled away by slowing down and getting Wemby some easy finishes at the rim. San Antonio built a multi-possession lead but still gave Utah life by conceding a wide-open three with less than a minute left, and it was a relief to finally hear the buzzer go off at the end.

Game notes

This was the Spurs’ third straight win, but the game still left me wanting more. San Antonio was disorganized for most of the night on both…

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Publish date : 2026-10-29 06:00:00

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