Spurs Routed by Rockets in Battle for NBA's Worst

Both the San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets are in strong contention for the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, as they were two of just three teams with fewer than 20 wins entering Sunday's meeting.

The San Antonio Spurs matched up with the Houston Rockets for the second night in a row Sunday in what was a meeting between two of the NBA's worst teams.

But after falling at the AT&T Center Saturday night, the Spurs were unable to get back at their divisional rival once the setting flipped to the Toyota Center, as San Antonio fell 142-110 after getting steamrolled in the second half.

Both the Spurs (16-49) and Rockets (15-49) are in strong contention for the No. 1 pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, as they are two of just three teams with fewer than 20 wins this season entering Sunday. Houston had lost 11 straight games before Saturday's win in San Antonio, but could now be working past the Spurs at the bottom of the Western Conference standings.

The Spurs got a team-high 17 points from forward Keita Bates-Diop while Charles Bassey (14 points), Devin Vassell (13 points), Malaki Branham (13 points, seven rebounds) and Devonte' Graham (14 points) all reached double figures as well.

However, this was hardly enough to keep up with a Houston offense that was explosive and efficient on Sunday night while scoring a season-high 142 points. The Rockets consistently detonated the rim with big dunks and shredded the nets with hot shooting, as Houston shot an impressive 61.2 percent from the floor and 54.2 percent from deep (13 of 24).

Rockets guard Jalen Green led the way with a game-high 31 points on 11 of 19 shooting. Kevin Porter Jr. diced up the Spurs defense with 19 points and 13 assists while Alperen Sengun (15 points, 14 rebounds), Jae'Sean Tate (16 points) and Tari Eason (17 points) provided key contributions from the frontcourt.

The Spurs jumped out to a quick 10-2 lead before getting into some back-and-forth with Houston. But the Rockets quickly blew the game open with a 21-3 run to take a 38-24 lead at the end of the first quarter, as the Spurs never led the rest of the way.

San Antonio had a respectable answer to Houston's run and cut the lead to 58-54 by the end of the second quarter, but the Rockets led 73-63 at halftime.

A third-quarter dunk fest and 3-point barrage allowed the Rockets to essentially end the game with a full quarter left. Houston had already broke the century mark by the end of the third and led 108-87.

It was more of the same in the fourth quarter, as the Rockets cruised to a win. The Spurs will now begin a six-game homestand on Friday against the Denver Nuggets.

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You can follow Zach Dimmitt on Twitter at @ZachDimmitt7

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