Johnson and Paul lead Spurs past Timberwolves 113-103 as Popovich misses game with illness

Published Nov. 2, 2024 10:49 p.m. ET

Associated Press

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Keldon Johnson had 25 points, Chris Paul added 15 points and 13 assists, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 113-103 on Saturday night without coach Gregg Popovich, who missed the game due to illness.

Jeremy Sochan added 19 points and 10 rebounds for San Antonio, and Victor Wembanyama had 17 points and six rebounds.

The 39-year-old Paul became the second-oldest player in NBA history with 10 assists in consecutive games. Hall of Fame point guard John Stockton of the Utah Jazz accomplished the feat at age 41.

Julius Randle scored 21 points and Anthony Edwards had 18 for Minnesota, playing on the second night of a back-to-back. The Timberwolves arrived at their hotel in San Antonio about 4:15 a.m. after rallying in the final minutes to defeat Denver 119-116 at home Friday night.

Takeaways

Timberwolves: Randle was 8 for 15 from the field while attacking Wembanyama with a series of drives, left-handed floaters and hook shots. Rudy Gobert went 3 for 8, getting his shot blocked twice by Wembanyama.

Spurs: Paul is averaging 16 points after scoring just six in his first two games with San Antonio. Paul had his second straight double-double, raising his career total to 529. He is second to LeBron James (575) in double-doubles among active players.

Key moment

San Antonio showed off its blossoming defensive prowess on a series of plays late in the first half to preserve a precarious lead. Johnson stole the ball from Donte DiVincenzo with 38 seconds left in the second quarter. The turnover led to an alley-oop dunk by Wembanyama that put the Spurs up 62-57. Wembanyama then rushed over to block Gobert at the rim, swatting his attempted dunk out of his hands and off the backboard with six seconds remaining.

Key stat

San Antonio had 11 turnovers for the second straight game after averaging 17.2 to start the season. The Spurs had a season-high 22 turnovers in a 105-93 loss to Oklahoma City on Wednesday. Since then, San Antonio has had 22 combined turnovers in winning consecutive games.