Wemby to the rescue: another dominant performance from the French star allows the Spurs to equalize the Western finals

The San Antonio Spurs made home-court advantage count in a 103-82 win over the champion Oklahoma City Thunder and evened the NBA Western Conference finals at 2-2.

French star Victor Wembanyama, who earlier in the day was named to the All-NBA First Team for the first time, celebrated the honor with a dominant performance, finishing with 33 points, eight rebounds, five assists, two steals and three blocks in 31 minutes on the court.

The center shot for a 50% efficiency (11-22) from the field, including three three-pointers that made the spectators delirious at the Frost Bank Center, in San Antonio (Texas). "We're not surprised, we did what we had to do," Wemby said in statements picked up by AFP. "We watched a lot of video in the last 48 hours and that was very important."

"It hasn't been anything extraordinary. It wasn't magic. We just did what we had to do," the French star added. "The series is still far from over. We have six more wins to go before we can rest."

Wemby nullified SGA, who scored just 19 points

The presence of the 7-foot-4 giant in the paint was a determining factor in both victories for the five-time NBA champion San Antonio Spurs, who are playing in their first conference finals in nearly a decade.

Defensively, Wembanyama influenced the game and limited Oklahoma City´s high-powered offense and one of its worst nights in recent years with just 82 points. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, a two-time MVP (Most Valuable Player) and also chosen in the year's top five, came up with just 19 points for Oklahoma City, seconded by center Isaiah Hartenstein with 12.

"We're not ready for the season to be over," said point guard De'Aaron Fox, recovered from his ankle injury. "We won 60 games (in the regular season) because we have a team with a lot of options, we just go out and find the best shots."

Three-pointers doom Thunder

Fox, 28, completed a double-double of 12 points and 10 rebounds in 31 minutes at the rim. The Thunder connected on just six of their 33 attempts from the three-point line, a key conditioning factor in the loss.

The young Spurs, who are playing their first postseason since 2019, dominated the game from start to finish and led by as many as 25 points in the third quarter before holding off the defending champions down the stretch.

Game 5 of the Western finals will be played Tuesday at the Paycom Center, the home of the champion Thunder, in Oklahoma City.

In the Eastern Conference, the New York Knicks dominated 3-0 over the Cleveland Cavaliers, a lead no team has squandered in playoff history. On Monday in Cleveland, the Knicks will have their first chance to reach the NBA Finals for the first time this century.