Inside The Spurs

Spurs' Victor Wembanyama Struggles to Score vs. Rockets

Victor Wembanyama was held to just 13 points in the Houston Rockets' loss against the San Antonio Spurs.

Jeremy Brener

In this story:

San Antonio Spurs rookie Victor Wembanyama has had a tremendous first season in the NBA, but he hasn't excelled in every game.

The otherworldly rookie didn't put on his best performance as the Spurs lost 103-101 to the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night at the Frost Bank Center. He scored 13 points while grabbing 10 rebounds in the loss, a sign of the Rockets' game plan against him.

Jabari Smith Jr. Victor Wembanyama Rockets
Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

"Our attention to (Wembanyama), making the other guys have to prove it to beat us, which some of them did for a minute," Rockets coach Ime Udoka said postgame. "(Spurs power forward Jeremy) Sochan and (point guard Tre) Jones hit some shots that kind of kept them in it. But the main thing was taking out those two, and I think we did a good job again."

Wembanyama has struggled all season against the Rockets. In four meetings against Houston, Wembanyama has averaged just 14.8 points per game, about six points shy of his season average. Only the New York Knicks, Chicago Bulls and Los Angeles Clippers have held him to lower averages, but those teams have played against Wembanyama fewer times than the Rockets.

Wembanyama will see a lot of the Rockets throughout his career, and as he grows in the NBA, he will learn how to adjust when teams make it more difficult for him.

Gregg Popovich Talks What Went Wrong vs. Rockets

Wembanyama and the Spurs will move on and play their next game on Friday against the defending champion Denver Nuggets, where the potential Rookie of the Year will match up with two-time MVP Nikola Jokic. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. CT in Austin.

Published
Jeremy Brener
JEREMY BRENER

Jeremy Brener is an editor, writer and social media manager for several Fan Nation websites. His work has also been featured in 247 Sports and SB Nation as a writer and podcaster. Brener has been with Fan Nation since 2021. Brener grew up in Houston, going to Astros, Rockets and Texans games as a kid. He moved to Orlando in 2016 to go to college and pursue a degree. He hosts "The Dream Take" podcast covering the Rockets, which has produced over 350 episodes since March 2020. Brener graduated in May 2020 from the University of Central Florida with a Bachelor's degree in Broadcast Journalism minoring in Sport Business Management. While at UCF, Brener worked for the school's newspaper NSM.today and "Hitting the Field," a student-run sports talk show and network. He was the executive producer for "Hitting the Field" from 2019-20. During his professional career, Brener has covered a number of major sporting events including the Pro Bowl, March Madness and several NBA and NFL games. As a fan, Brener has been to the 2005 World Series, 2010 FIFA World Cup and the 2016 NCAA National Championship between the Villanova Wildcats and North Carolina Tar Heels. Now, Brener still resides in the Central Florida area and enjoys writing, watching TV, hanging out with friends and going to the gym. Brener can be followed on Twitter @JeremyBrener. For more inquiries, please email jeremybrenerchs@gmail.com.

Home/News