Spurs Swat Knicks Without Victor Wembanyama

The New York Knick endured a brutal loss at the onset of a speedy road trip.

Mar 19, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; New York Knicks forward Mikal Bridges (25) and San Antonio Spurs guard Stephon Castle (5) battle for a loose ball during the first half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

With the New York Knicks in town, the San Antonip Spurs partied like it was 1999.

Another rematch of the that season's NBA Finals landed in the hosting Spurs favor as they took the Knicks to task by a 120-105 final at Frost Bank Center. San Antonio led by as much as 28 points in the dominant victory, denying the Knicks a season sweep in the yearly couple for the first time since 2021-22.

Wasted in the Knicks' latest loss was a dominant night from their interior men: Karl-Anthony Towns put in 32 points while Mitchell Robinson had a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double off the bench in another strong step forward in his ongoing return from injury.

Mar 19, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; New York Knicks forward Karl-Anthony Towns (32) drives to the basket while defended by San Antonio Spurs forward Jeremy Sochan (10) during the second half at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

But with both Jalen Brunson and Victor Wembanyama sidelined by injuries after last year's epic Texas tilt, Sandro Mamukelashvili enjoyed a Lone Star State-sized breakout: the Seton Hall alum put in a career-best 34 points off the bench, hitting all seven of his attempts from three-point range on a 13-of-14 output overall. That rendered a strong bench effort from the Knicks (32 points) mostly null on a night where the non-Towns starters struggled mightily from the field.

Mamukelashvili fell one rebound short of a double-double but that was perhaps his lone shortcoming. He accomplished all he did in but 19 minutes of action, putting forth the best scoring effort with less than 20 minutes to his name in NBA history. Mamukelashvili also becomes the fourth Knicks opponent to have a perfect night from deep on a minimum of seven attempts, joining Taurean Prince (8), Sasha Danilovic, and Bryn Forbes.

It was clear from the get-go that a long night awaited the Knicks (43-25) in their final interconference road game of the regular season: after Towns put in the first nine point for the Knicks, San Antonio embarked on a 14-1 run that created an early, permanent lead. Chris Paul accounted for all but two points in the rally through shots and assists, include back-to-back three-pointers that forced the Knicks into a timeout and a 23-10 deficit with 4:31 left in the period.

The Spurs, victims of a Christmas Day defeat at the hands of the Knicks, were only getting warmed up after carrying a nine-point lead in the second period: the visiting Knicks cut the deficit to three within the first 75 seconds but the floodgates were open thereafter to the tune of a 36-15 tally over the latter 10-plus minutes. Beyond Towns, the Knicks' starters were a dreadful 3-of-24 from the field, including 2-of-12 from three.

With Mamukelashvili on the bench for the entire third quarter, the Knicks made things interesting by forcing eight San Antonio turnovers. A speedy 22-6 run narrowed the gap to eight before the midway mark of the frame and, even when the Spurs boosted the lead back up, the Knicks trimmed it to a manageable 11 thanks to a run of eight in a row to close the period.

That, however, turned out to be mere table-setting for Mamukelashvili: the New York City native of Georgian descent opened the period on a personal 6-0 run before assisting on Stephon Castle's three-pointer to re-establish the large lead.

Mar 19, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Sandro Mamukelashvili (54) passes the ball to forward Jeremy Sochan (10) during the second half against the New York Knicks at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

Once the outcome was firmly in their corner, the Spurs (29-39) happily allowed Mamukelashvili to dazzle the fans, as he capped off the game with 21 points in the final period alone. Those gathered at Frost Bank Center regaled him with chants of "MVP" and "Mamu" in appreciation, as it served as a welcome distraction from a brutal season missing franchise faces like Wembanyama and head coach Gregg Popovich.

With the win, the Spurs remained within striking distance of the Western Conference's fourth and final Play-In seed despite missing Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox. Of note, the Spurs outrebounded the Knicks by eight despite the loss of Wembanyama, as Keldon Johnson led the way with 10 off the bench.

The good news for the Knicks is that they won't have to wait long to atone for Wednesday's disaster, as they'll immediately return to action on Thursday night in Charlotte (7 p.m. ET, MSG).

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