Wemby, Spurs Dominate Thunder 118-97 To Force Game Seven

When the San Antonio Spurs needed their superman the most, he showed up and put them one win away from the NBA Finals.

Victor Wembanyama's 28-point, 10 rebound performance, along with good team shooting, helped the Spurs defeat the Oklahoma City Thunder 118-97 in Game Six of the Western Conference Finals on Thursday night. Which sets up the two most beautiful words in sports: Game Seven.

The Spurs came out on a mission to start the first quarter kickstarted with a Julian Champagnie three pointer. Then Wembanyama got the Frost Bank Center fired up with a sequence where he hit two threes and violently blocked a Thunder shot.

The Thunder would come back after the timeout to cut the Spurs lead to one. San Antonio though would open up a ten-point lead late in the quarter, and a 7-2 run to close the quarter saw the Spurs lead 35-22 after the first.

The Spurs would keep Oklahoma City in their rear-view mirror in the second quarter, maintaining their double-digit advantage through the majority of the period. Wembanyama though was not finished putting on a show in the first half, showing off his skills inside with a tough bucket to extend the Spurs lead.

The Spurs were red-hot from three in the first half, hitting eleven deep balls, and shot 51-percent from the floor overall. The Thunder meanwhile went just 6-for-18 from deep in the first half.

Oklahoma City would make things interesting before the end of the half, going on a 10-3 run to cut the Spurs lead to 60-53 at halftime.

The Thunder came out swinging in the second half, quickly cutting the deficit to five. But the Spurs, as they did most of the game, kept the Thunder at bay, building back a ten-point cushion midway through the third quarter. Devin Vassell, who hit four threes on the night, provided the second half spark for San Antonio.

The lead would eventually balloon to as much 26 points, with Spurs the Spurs outscoring Oklahoma City 32-13 in the third quarter, holding a 92-66 advantage heading into the final period.

The Spurs kept the foot on the gas in the fourth quarter, maintaining a 26-point lead for most of the frame. San Antonio and Oklahoma City both removed their starters and main bench players with about seven minutes remaining in the game.

San Antonio got back to their basics on the boards, outrebounding the Thunder 62-52 in the game. The Spurs also kept the turnovers, which have been a problem in the series, to a minimum. They turned it over 12 times on Thursday night, most coming when the game was well in hand.

The Spurs, after going ice cold in Game Five, rebounded with hot shooting in Game Six. All told, they shot 37-percent from three, and 47-percent from the floor. Stephon Castle chipped in 17 points and 9 assists for the Spurs, while Dylan Harper added 18 points, 6 rebounds and 4 assists off the bench.

The Thunder, meanwhile, shot just 36-percent from the floor, and a rough 25-percent from deep. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led OKC with 15 points but shot 6-for-18 from the floor, and 0-for-5 from deep. Jared McCain added another 13 for the Thunder.

The win by the Spurs sets up a winner-take-all to go to the NBA Finals against the New York Knicks. Game Seven is set for Saturday night in Oklahoma City.