Final score: Spurs complete 17-point comeback to beat Warriors, 104-94

With a furious fourth quarter of shots and nearly airtight defense, the San Antonio Spurs came back from 17 points down against the West’s top team to rise above .500 (9-8).

Injured Spurs: Devin Vassell – knee contusion, Jeremy Sochan – left thumb surgery and Keldon Johnson – right hamstring tightness.

The Warriors’ sharp passing, two-man action, accurate shooting and first grip on loose balls gave them an early lead against the hosts. Most of the damage was done by Andrew Wiggins and Buddy Hield, who combined for 18 of the Warriors’ 29 first-quarter points.

The Silver and Black struggled to finish in the paint, making a scant two of seven shots and converting 16.7 percent from long range. Still, they raised the defensive intensity about 20° at the end of the first quarter, coming up with a block that sparked the transition and picked up a steal.

Then the Spurs started the second quarter getting killed by Hield in split action. They found themselves down by 16 points. But they fought back, making three of eight treys and scoring on a backdoor cut to take advantage when Curry was on the bench.

After Chef Curry checked in, the Spurs were outscored 14-8 to end the half.

At halftime, the Spurs were down 50-38. The Crew had 12 paint points, seven on the break, four via second chances and 11 off the bench. Harrison Barnes was the only starter who shot effectively, making two of three shots. No other starter logged more than a third of the attempts.

Subsequently, the Spurs finished six of eight shots to start the third quarter on pulls from Wemby, Chris Paul and Barnes, but there was still double-digit separation on the scoreboard in favor of Golden State.

Next, they started the fourth quarter, making three shots in the restricted area and a 3-pointer to cut the deficit to four points. Wembanyama drained a trey a minute later to cut it to one point, then Stephon Castle took the lead on a dribble to the paint and a late 3-pointer.

The Spurs won 104-94. They had 42 paint points, 13 in the open court, 12 on second chances and 20 off the bench.

Observations:

• San Antonio’s ball movement was like a freshly forged blade cutting through flesh. The proposal caused many overreactions.

• Wembanyama returned after missing three straight outings with a right knee contusion. First, he was guarded by Trayce Jackson-Davis, and he failed to outscore Stephen Curry in the first quarter and missed three 3-pointers. His shot selection was poor as several were unnecessarily deep.

In addition, he made three of nine shots in the first half, burying a jumper over Kevon Looney at the elbow and two catch-and-shoot treys.

After the break, Wembanyama stepped up their game. He converted six baskets from short, mid and long distances and was a key player down the stretch.

On defense, Wembanyama deflected a lob pass, blocked Jackson-Davis at the rim, but was put in several screen rolls and had a close-range score in drop coverage. He also bit on three pump fakes in the first half.

In the second half, he was a deterrent as a helper in the back line. His top moment of the game was consecutive blocks on Jackson-Davis and Moses Moody on one possession.

• The Spurs shot miserably from 3-point range in the first half, registering six of 26 attempts. Some were bad ideas because the shot was very deep or there wasn’t enough rhythm, but others were open enough that they didn’t fall. Same story in the second half, with seven of 21 threes.

• Non-Wembanyama minutes: Spurs were outscored by 11 points when Wembanyama sat out.

• This season, Spurs have had difficulty taking care of the ball, as before the game they were number 22 in turnover percentage. But that was not the case with the Warriors. The hosts only lost the ball eight times throughout the match.

• Castle guarded Curry. He did a nice job of continuing to dribble and lock and back in the half court.