Mitch Johnson called a timeout just a few minutes into the third quarter of the San Antonio Spurs 106-105 loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. After that timeout, five new players were on the court, with the starters all sitting on the bench. It was a sign of the head coach’s frustration with his team’s performance.
“We wanted to come out (of the half) with a certain amount of focus and competitiveness, and we just didn’t,” Johnson told reporters after the game.
Despite the Spurs leading for most of the first half, it never quite felt like San Antonio had total control of the game. Their offensive execution was lacking, and if it weren’t for how poorly the Grizzlies were shooting, they may have found themselves down at halftime. Both teams shot below 40% from the field in the first half. Julian Champagnie’s 19 first-half points kept the Spurs’ offense afloat during their struggles.
“We were probably in control for most of the game, but it’s misleading because the process of what we were trying to execute was not sharp,” Johnson said. “Our body language, reactions, and focus on the gameplan execution, and what needed to be done were not sharp. That’s frustrating, and that’s on myself. It’s something we need to be better at, or we are going to continue to find ourselves in situations like this.”
Johnson went even deeper into his bench for help after the Grizzlies took a third-quarter lead. He subbed in Jeremy Sochan and Jordan McLaughlin, both of whom have been stuck at the end of the bench for the majority of the season. The game flipped immediately when they entered.
Sochan forced an 8-second violation. McLaughlin got a steal and knocked down a three-pointer. Both of their defensive effort put pressure on Memphis, while San Antonio’s superstar put in work on the offensive end. Victor Wembanyama came off the bench and was on a minutes restriction after missing the last two games with a knee injury. He exploded for 30 points in just 21 minutes. The combined efforts of Sochan, Wembanyama, and McLaughlin kept the Spurs around, down just 1 point heading into the fourth.
“I thought Jeremy was excellent,” Johnson said. “The box score can be misleading. He was a huge positive for us, much more than whatever the box score says.”
The Grizzlies were led in the fourth quarter by their role players. Jock Landale and Cam Spencer were excellent all game, particularly down the stretch, making clutch plays on both ends. Landale had 19 points and 9 rebounds, 6 of them were offensive. His three triples kept the Spurs’ defense honest, giving Memphis plenty of space. Spencer took advantage of that space on his way to 21 points, 8 rebounds, and 8 assists.
While those two were growing the Grizzlies’ lead, Keldon Johnson was doing what he could to keep the Spurs in the game. He had 8 early fourth-quarter points, including a three-pointer and an and-1 finish. San Antonio leaned heavily on Wembanyama down the stretch of the fourth, going to him in the high post several times as they looked to claw back into it. Finally, the big man hit a huge three in transition to give San Antonio the lead with 3:45 to go.
The Spurs found themselves up 105-101 with just over a minute left, thanks to a jaw-dropping De’Aaron Fox chase-down block on Jaylen Wells, followed by a floater on the other end. But it was Spencer’s night, as he hit a clutch three and then a step-back jumper in the next two possessions that put the Grizzlies ahead. After two missed FTs from Landale with 13 seconds left, the Spurs elected not to use their last timeout, instead letting Fox make something happen. He created space for himself to get an open jumper, but was blocked from behind by the help defender as the buzzer sounded.
Despite an “unsharp” effort, according to Johnson, San Antonio had an opportunity to grab a road win before facing the Los Angeles Lakers at home on Wednesday night. Now they’ll head back home on a two-game losing streak.
“You have to participate in your own survival and do your part,” Johnson said of his team’s performance.
San Antonio will look to snap the losing streak at 6:30 CT on ESPN Wednesday night.
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