The San Antonio Spurs are now in a series with the Portland Trailblazers.
After holding a nine-point lead with five minutes to play, the Spurs watched their lead evaporate, as they fell to the Trailblazers 106-103 Tuesday night. That loss evens the first-round playoff series at 1-1.
The game was a slugfest in the first half, with the score deadlocked 57-57 at half time. However, there was a scary moment in the first half, as Spurs star Victor Wembanyama fell hard to the floor, and exited the game under concussion protocol.
Wemby is in concussion protocol, and there has been no update on his status for game three.
The Spurs came out firing in the second half, though, at one point building a lead of 14 points. Luke Kornet played a key role off the bench in building that lead, scoring 10 points, notching 8 rebounds, two assists, and ignited the crowd with a reverse dunk.
Stephon Castle scored a team-high 18 points for the Spurs, adding 7 rebounds and 5 assists. De'Aaron Fox added 17 points, while Devin Vassell added 16.
At one point, with 8:33 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Spurs built a 93-79 lead. That is when things began falling apart.
From that point, the Trailblazers would go on a 27-10 run to end the ball game. Scoot Henderson led the charge for Portland, putting up a game-high 31 points, shooting 5-for-9 from three-point range. Jrue Holiday added another 16 points for Portland, hitting the layup that gave Portland the lead for good with 2:02 remaining.
The Spurs shot 3-for-15 from the floor in that final eight-minute stretch, turning the ball over twice. Devin Vassell got one final look at a game-tying three pointer with two seconds remaining, but it went begging off the back iron.
The series is now even 1-1 as it shifts back to Portland for game three and four.
Game three is Friday night in Portland. Tip-off is at 9:30 pm Central time.
Photo: Ronald Cortes / Getty Images Sport / Getty Images