On a night when 7-foot-3 star Victor Wembanyama didn’t play like an alien, the Portland Trail Blazers fell 118-105 on the road to the San Antonio Spurs.

The Spurs used red-hot shooting and a big bench boost to spoil a great night for Portland center Deandre Ayton and the debut of Shaedon Sharpe. The Blazers trailed by just one at halftime, but another not-so-hot third quarter from Portland allowed the Spurs to pull ahead by double digits. The Blazers stayed an arm’s length apart the rest of the night. Let’s dive into the game at a glance.

Blazer of the game: Deandre Ayton. The big starting player was extremely active against the Spurs, whether it was kicking off, rolling around for picks or fighting for post position. This activity resulted in 21 points on 10-15 shooting and 10 rebounds. He connected with the Blazers’ guards for several lobs and even hit a three-pointer. However, he was quieter in the second half, with only four points.

Statistics of the game: The Spurs outscore the Blazers in bench points 61-31. While Wembanyama scored a quiet 12 points, San Antonio’s bench picked up the slack with four players in double figures. Malaki Branham scored 17 points from the pine, killing the Blazers with 6-8 shooting from the field and three three-pointers. Speaking of three-pointers, the Spurs shot 16-for-39 from long range, compared to Portland’s 9-for-32 shooting percentage in that department.

What we’ll remember: The return of Shaedon Sharpe. The Blazers’ third-year guard played in his first NBA game in 301 days and fit seamlessly into Portland’s lineup. Sharpe was calm and effective in 20 minutes, scoring 13 points on 6-9 shooting (1-4 from 3), two rebounds and one assist. He let the game come to him and the shot looked pure – bonus points for a great No -Look pass and a skyscraping block.

Box score

Next up: Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Blazers are back in action Friday night for an away contest at Minnesota, with a start date scheduled for 6:00 p.m. PST. In the meantime, stay tuned to know more about today’s game.