Mar 10, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) shoots the ball against Boston Celtics center Luka Garza (52) and guard Derrick White (9) in the first half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images | Daniel Dunn-Imagn Images The S an Antonio Spurs got even with the Charlotte Hornets and claimed their 26th win at Frost Bank Center this season. It wasn’t always pretty, but they did the little things on defense which kept the visitors at arm’s length for the whole game.  Both sides got out in the fast lane early, trying to control the pace of the game with quick 3-pointers, yet the Spurs were sharper, getting inside and earning trips to the line. They did most of the work for a 13- point lead while Victor Wembanyama got his first rest, and then he came back to pressure the lane. It looked like it would get ugly in the second quarter, as San Antonio got what they wanted while Charlotte was stuck in the mud. Part of the reason for the Spurs’ success was avoiding unnecessary fouls on defense, and they didn’t let the Hornets get to the line until there were fewer than five minutes in the first half. But the game flipped in the non-Wemby minutes as the Hornets briefly got within reach.  After halftime, Wembanyama returned and picked up where he left off, nailing mid and long-range jumpers, while LaMelo Ball and Kon Knueppel found their outside touch. Knueppel had a 16-point third quarter, and the Hornets targeted Luke Kornet with screen rolls since he’s not comfortable guarding on the perimeter, but they couldn’t get closer than eight points. To make matters worse for the visitors, foul trouble limited Ball to 16 minutes going into the fourth quarter. The Hornets were able to get closer in part because of the effects of their pace, but the Silver and Black found a second wind and reclaimed their double-figure advantage and won the game going away. Takeaways: No team in the NBA has more wins through the last two months than the San Antonio Spurs (22) and Charlotte Hornets (21), and both are top-three in net rating, so Saturday certainly counts a quality win. In Charlotte’s case, it was only a matter of time before their talent bloomed, physically and mentally. The Hornets made a consistent effort to play fast, but the initial burst was unsustainable for both sides. It was the type of stuff that had plenty of players breathing hard. Still, the Spurs were superior while playing fast. Victor Wembanyama got San Antonio’s offense started, attacking from the inside and out, which confounded Charlotte. A possible reason his RPMs were cranked up early was that he was playing against his countryman, Moussa Diabaté. Additionally, he showed some of his playmaking gifts late in the third quarter with feeds to Kornet and finished with 32 points in 30 minutes. The long ball wasn’t falling for the Spurs, but their rebounding is one of the reasons the day wasn’t ruined. Devin Vassell even climbed the stairway to heaven for a monster board in the third quarter and Kornet tallied four offensive rebounds. This type of effort was needed because the bench mob was without Dylan Harper, and they didn’t give much of a scoring punch in the first half (12). They were more productive in the second half as they finished with 33 , but the lowest scoring bench in the league gets 28.5 points nightly (Houston Rockets) and the best one averages 47.4 (Memphis Grizzlies). The Spurs did a good job in the first half of making life difficult for Kon Knueppel, who has been one of the top two rookies this season. The players guarding him kept their heads on a swivel, being aware of him and sticking close. They weren’t as sharp on him later, allowing him to get loose on cuts, but overall, it was a nice job against the Hornets. They held Charlotte to 103.2 points per 100 possessions, good enough for the 16th percentile, Per Cleaning the Glass. It seems that Carter Bryant always finds a way to inspire the team with a big play, and his emphatic baseline jam had that effect in the third quarter. He later hit a corner trey in the fourth, that helped cap a run that put the Hornets away. ...read more read less