During the NBA’s Monday night slate, the Washington Wizards beat the Spurs 127-106, ending a 22-game losing streak in San Antonio. Deni Avdija scored a career-high 25 points and Bradley Beal added 21. It is Washington’s longest winning streak since a six-game run in 2015 and its first win in San Antonio since 1999.
“You never want to be on the losing end of that streak, but it’s good to get that one off our chest,” Wizards coach Wes Unseld Jr. said.
As Washington got off to a fast start, Kristaps Porzingis added 17 points and nine rebounds. Meanwhile, The Spurs, who have lost six straight this month and are 2-13, had 26 points from Keldon Johnson, 17 from Jeremy Sochan, and 16 from Zach Collins.
At halftime, the Wizards led 63-55, and the Spurs closed within four points midway through the third quarter, but Washington answered with an 8-0 run to regain a double-digit lead. The Spurs are 0-35 when trailing by double digits this season.
“We had more fast-break points,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We had more second-chance points. We had fewer turnovers. We had more points in the paint but shot 20-something from 3 and they shot 50 or something. Game over.”
NBA SCORES & NEWS: Deni Avdija, Washington Wizards & San Antonio Spurs Updates
Zach Collins entered the game early after Jakob Poeltl picked up two fouls in the first four minutes, forcing the Spurs to play with inexperienced players. Porzingis scored 13 of the Wizards’ first 19 points.
Aside from his early scoring burst, Porzingis did not score in the following two periods and only had four points in the fourth. During the final three quarters, Avdija scored 23 points to help the Wizards win here for the first time since he was 2 years old.
“The streak is done,” Avdija said. “Just to close that circle and be here and having a good game versus the Spurs and end that streak. I think everybody did a really great job competing. When we’re focused and sharing the ball, we’re a really dangerous team.”
NBA SCORES & NEWS: Deni Avdija, Washington Wizards & San Antonio Spurs Updates
The Spurs went 7 for 29 on 3-pointers, while Washington hit 16 of 30. Avdija finished 10 for 12 from the field and was successful on both 3-point attempts, while Kendrick Nunn added 10 points to give him double digits in all three games following his acquisition from the Los Angeles Lakers.
