Sandro Mamukelashvili Breakout vs. Knicks, By the Numbers

Sandro Mamukelashvili became one of the unexpected heroes of the 2024-25 NBA seasons with a dominant performance against the New York Knicks.

Mar 19, 2025; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs forward Sandro Mamukelashvili (54) reacts after scoring a three point basket during the second half against the New York Knicks at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images / Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

A former Seton Hall Pirate stole the show against the New York Knicks.

While the Knicks likely won't be able to appreciate it for obvious reasons, San Antonio Spurs super sub Sandro Mamukelashvili became one of the most unlikely heroes of the 2024-25 NBA season. Averaging less than five points in his NBA career to date, Mamukelashvili scored 34 points off the bench on a 13-of-14 shooting night as the Spurs put forth a 120-105 victory over the dumbfounded Knicks.

“A guy has their game going like that, we have to find him and get to his body and be physical and kind of get him out of rhythm," a disappointed Josh Hart said of the former Big East rival's "One Shining Moment" in March, per Phillip Martinez of SNY. "We didn't do that. He had a career night, he's a good player. But we got to know what guys do well, their tendencies and take that away and we didn't take anything away from him.”

Nonetheless, Mamukelashvili's output will likely go down as one of the most shocking outputs by any opponent and he'll undoubtedly go down as one of the best feel-good stories of the 2024-25 campaign: one where the Knicks played the unwilling, unwitting, and ultimately unsuccessful antagonists.

Just how dominant was his effort? Check out the numbers beyond the numbers below:

0

Incredibly, Mamukelashvili's night to remember came on a night where he was benched for the entire first and third quarters. Perhaps unironically, the third was the one period where the Knicks held a candle to the Spurs' dominant effort: New York won the period 29-16 and whittled what was a 28-point San Antonio lead all the way down to eight as Mamukelashvili could only watch.

8

Mamukelashvili literally saved the best for last, as his fourth quarter was one for the ages: granted entry after a dormant third period, Mamukelashvili hit each of his last eight shot attempts, tying a season-best for any NBA game this season with some elite company (Giannis Antetokounmpo and Paolo Banchero). Unfortunately for the Knicks, Mamukelashvili broke a bit of a trend in that regard: of the three perfect periods, only his led to a victory.

19

If the celebratory aftermath was any indication, Mamukelashvili is close friends with fellow New York native Flava Flav, who best known for the literally timely fashion statement of wearing a clock around his neck.

Appropriately, Mamukelashvili made the most of his time afforded to him on Wednesday night: with 34 points in only 19 minutes, he became the all-time leader in a single-game efforts that afforded him less than 20 to pull of the feat, breaking the prior mark of 32 in 19 set by Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown in 2021. Of the four to hit 30 (a list that also includes Kevin Durant), Mamukelashvili is the second reserve, joining Cleveland's Kevin Love (32 in 15 in April 2022).

21

Once the result was undeniably tilted in their favor, the Spurs let Mamukelashvili put on a show in the fourth quarter, as he burst forward for 21 period points that sent Frost Bank Center into hysterics. Of note, Mamukelashvili had a role in each of the first nine San Antonio points of the frame to help put the game out of the pursuing Knicks' reach, scoring the first six on his own before assisting on a Stephon Castle triple.

With a broader focus on top-heavy lineups in the modern NBA, Mamukelashvili's output off the bench stands as a bit an anomaly this season: he's just the fifth player to come off the bench and score 20 in a period this year and the 21 he had is the second-best output of any bench in any 2024-25 period. Alas, the Knicks are responsible for letting up each of the top two outputs, as Russell Westbrook torched them for 24 back in the fourth quarter of a November game (albeit one the Knicks won handily).

48

Mamukelashvili's scoring wasn't the only thing on point (pun intended) on Wednesday night: between nine rebounds, three assists, and an interception of a Mikal Bridges pass (which became a Keldon Johnson triple that more or less put the game out of reach for the chasing Knicks), Mamukelashvili had a direct role in 48 San Antonio points.

Impressive as the scoring was, the Spurs were likely most appreciative of the way he stepped up in the board battle: despite the lengthy loss of Victor Wembanyama, the Spurs held a plus-8 advantage on the Knicks in the rebounding margin, New York's worst ratio in just about a month. The Knicks are 11-16 when they lose the rebounding battle so far this season and Mamukelashvili played his part with fellow reserve Johnson, who led all Spurs with 10.

92.9

The lone blemish on Mamukelashvili's shot chart was a second quarter try rejected by Mitchell Robinson, whose first double-double since returning from a season-long injury was well-buried beneath his mastery.

In any event, Mamukelashvili won't have to worry if DOGE sends him an email about the way he's properly spending his time: he became just the fifth Knicks opponent to shoot at least 90 percent against Manhattan finest with a minimum of 14 attempts, a list where Wilt Chamberlain (94.7) and Charles Barkley (93.3, shared with Hal Greer and Buck Williams) hold the top two spots. It's also tied for the third-most efficient Spurs shooting night in the same department, as he and Gene Banks sit behind only two better efforts from George Gervin.

100

Mamukelashvili literally kept it 100 against the Knicks in more ways than one, going a perfect 7-of-7 with an extra point on the line from three-point range. While that feat in of itself hasn't exactly been rare these days — Desmond Bane did it for Memphis on Monday — Mamukelashvili becomes just the fourth man to sink a at least seven on seven against the Knicks.

Taurean Prince set such a record with eight just under two years ago while Sasha Danilovic (1996) and Bryn Forbes (2021) also reached the mark. Mamukelashvili also is just the 14th bench player in NBA history to go at least a perfect 7-of-7 in a single game and the second this season next to Ty Jerome of Cleveland (who is the only one to go 8-for-8 along with Sam Perkins).

Fortunately for the Knicks, Mamukelashvili fell short of the all-time perfect night from deep: that record still belongs to injured franchise face Brunson, who pulled off the act in December 2023 and shares it alongside fellow Knick Latrell Sprewell and two-time earner Ben Gordon.

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