Jakob Pöltl suffered a 104:119 home defeat against his former club Toronto Raptors with the San Antonio Spurs in the National Basketball Association (NBA) on Wednesday (local time). The center from Vienna recorded a double-double for the 22nd time this season. In addition to eleven points and twelve rebounds, the 26-year-old also had two assists and a block in 33:50 minutes.
In the second of seven home games in a row, San Antonio was level with the Canadians after a 61:58 half-time lead until just before the end of the third quarter. In the closing stages, the Raptors quickly built a double-digit lead and clinched their 35th win of the season.
Gregg Popovich still has to go to his 1,336. Victory in the NBA regular season as the coach who alone would propel him to the top of that ranking. The next chance is on Friday against Utah Jazz.
Phoenix sovereign in the summit against Miami
The top duel of the evening became a clear affair for the Phoenix Suns. The NBA leader defeated the Miami Heat, leaders of the Eastern Conference, 111-90 away. The team from Arizona is now the first that can theoretically no longer be pushed out of the play-offs.
While the Suns were able to fall back on Devin Booker, who was last on the league’s CoV list, the hosts in Downtown Miami had to do without Jimmy Butler, who fell ill at short notice.
Another bankruptcy set it for the Los Angeles Lakers. LeBron James and colleagues lost to latecomer Houston Rockets after overtime with 130:139. A triple-double by the superstar with 23 points, 14 rebounds and twelve assists as well as 30 points by Russell Westbrook could not avert the defeat.
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