PORTLAND, Ore. -- San Antonio Spurs star Victor Wembanyama didn't dazzle offensively early, but his stifling defense laid the groundwork Sunday for a comeback that sent the Portland Trail Blazers to the brink of elimination.
Wembanyama logged seven blocks and four steals to go with 27 points and 11 rebounds as San Antonio rallied from a 19-point deficit to defeat the Trail Blazers 114-93 in Game 4 to seize a 3-1 series lead. In his first game back after suffering a concussion in Game 2, Wembanyama became the first player to log at least 25 points and five blocks in his first career postseason outing on the road since 1973-74, when blocks became an official statistic, according to ESPN Research.
"It's special, obviously," Wembanyama said. "I had lots of emotions in me before the game, obviously, excitement, frustration. So, I let it all out today."
Those emotions stemmed from Wembanyama wanting to play in Friday's Game 3 at Moda Center after successfully advancing through the NBA's concussion protocol. Wembanyama and the team were optimistic the league would clear him for a Game 3 return, sources told ESPN. But Wembanyama couldn't gain final clearance from the NBA until approximately an hour before tipoff of Game 4.
"I won't get into the details," he said. "I don't want it to become a distraction. Ask me again after the season. All the doctors, especially on the Spurs, but the doctors all around, they were great, took great care of me. But the way the situation was handled was very disappointing. Not on the Spurs. But as I say, I won't get into details."
San Antonio's comeback victory makes it the first team in NBA history to trail by 15 points or more at the half and win by 15-plus points. The Spurs fell behind 17 points at intermission and started the second half on a 13-0 run to pull within 4 points after just 3 minutes and 54 seconds on a Devin Vassell dunk. Wembanyama tied the score at 74-all on a tip dunk right before the buzzer sounded to end the third quarter.
The Spurs outscored the Trail Blazers 73-35 in the second half, marking the second-largest point differential (plus-38) in the second half of a playoff game in NBA history, according to ESPN Research, behind the Golden State Warrior's plus-39 in the second half of Game 6 of the 2018 Western Conference finals.
Wembanyama and the Spurs outscored Portland 34-16 in the paint over that span.
In Game 4, San Antonio rallied from a 15-point deficit in the third quarter for a win, marking their largest playoff comeback victory since Game 5 of the 2014 NBA Finals.
"The games have unfolded in a way that would be pretty clear for us that you can't tiptoe or go into a game with the wrong approach," Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said. "On the road, it's probably four or five times that in terms of where the game can slip away and that other team can ride some momentum. They've shown tremendous gall in the response of where we have been a few times in the second half in the last two games."
Portland is now the third team in the last 20 postseasons to lose consecutive home playoff games that it led by 15 points more, according to ESPN Research.
Vassell poured in a team-high nine points in the third quarter, while De'Aaron Fox added seven of his game-high 28 points. Wembanyama scored six points, blocked four shots and logged a steal.
"That's Vic being the best player in the world and we know that he can do that," Vassell said. "For him to be able to dominate both ends of the floor doesn't even really come as a surprise anymore. You expect it. You expect that type of greatness from him and that's what we need from him every game."
Wembanyama is now the fourth player since blocks were first tracked in 1974 to score 60 points, grab 20 rebounds and tally at least 10 blocks in his first three career playoff games, joining the company of Patrick Ewing, David Robinson and Alonzo Mourning.
Wembanyama started slow on offense, shooting 4 of 12 in the first half for nine points to go with two blocks and a steal. In the final frame, the Frenchman shot 3 of 3, drained all six of his free throws and contributed two steals and a block to pace a Spurs team that outscored the Trail Blazers 40-19 down the stretch.
"We've had to fight back," Fox said. "When we're down, we figure out why. We try to fix that. When a team gets up you feel the electricity in the building, especially in a playoff game. We felt that. And once we tied the game up, we started feeling good about it."
Through the three games Wembanyama has played throughout this series, he's allowed just 10 points when contesting a shot, holding Portland to 5-of-30 shooting while blocking 10 shots.
San Antonio hosts Game 5 on Tuesday at Frost Bank Center.
"We need to find the answers before having our backs against the wall," Wembanyama said. "But that also shows the strength of our team. In adversity, we stick together. We get closer to each other. We feed off each other's energy."