Victor Wembanyama finished with 17 points, 14 rebounds and six blocks as the San Antonio Spurs never trailed in a 114-95 Game 5 victory that eliminated the Portland Trail Blazers on Tuesday night.
De’Aaron Fox led scorers with 21 points, Julian Champagnie added 19 and Dylan Harper had 17 as San Antonio built a lead as large as 28 points. The win was the Spurs’ third straight and sent them into the second round.
Champagnie said the team was focused on closing the series at home and avoiding a return trip to Portland, calling that the motivation the Spurs needed to finish the series.
San Antonio advances to the Western Conference semifinals for the first time since 2017. They will play the winner of the Denver Nuggets–Minnesota Timberwolves matchup; Minnesota leads that series 3-2 and hosts Game 6 on Thursday.
Portland coach Tiago Splitter called defending Wembanyama extremely difficult, explaining that teams have to use tricks like staggered screens and spins because Wembanyama can contest both perimeter shots and rim attempts, and that his presence will pose problems for opponents for years.
The Trail Blazers cut the deficit to 91-82 with eight minutes remaining after an 11-0 run, but San Antonio shut down the rally. Late in the game Wembanyama tipped Deni Avdija’s floater off the top of the backboard and into the crowd. Avdija finished with 22 points but made just one of six three-point attempts, and Portland shot 23 percent from long range.
Scoot Henderson was limited to 10 points after a skirmish with Harper late in the third quarter of Game 3; the series featured several physical confrontations. Coach Mitch Johnson said the Spurs could not afford another early double-digit deficit, and San Antonio answered that concern with a 17-4 start keyed by a pair of threes and eight early points from Champagnie.
Champagnie was 5-for-7 from three-point range as the Spurs closed out the Trail Blazers, and the club finished the game shooting 40 percent from beyond the arc.