Victor Wembanyama makes NBA history with 52-point, 24-rebound, 8-block game in Spurs win

Victor Wembanyama has had a heck of a career as he plays his fourth NBA season. But nothing matches what he did on Wednesday.

The San Antonio Spurs superstar set a new career high in scoring with 52 points plus 24 rebounds and 8 blocks in a 112-111 win over the Dallas Mavericks. No player in NBA history has posted those totals since blocks became an official stat in 1973, and only one other player had posted even a 50-20-5 game (Bob McAdoo, Feb 22, 1974).

The game came down to the final possessions, with Wembanyama making a free throw to give the Spurs the lead and Kyrie Irving missing a would-be game-winner right before the buzzer.

It was a tough shot for Irving, who had P.J. Washington unguarded on the perimeter but opted for a contested turnaround jump shot that missed the rim.

Wembanyama was clearly on pace for history from early in the game, eventually entering the locker room after becoming the first player to post at least 25 points, 15 rebounds and 5 blocks in a single half . It was a dominant half for both him and the Spurs, who led by 17 at halftime and as much as 19 in the third quarter.

The Mavericks, however, came back with Cooper Flagg and Naji Marshall leading the charge and at one point led by three in the fourth quarter. The Spurs were in dire straits around then, as Wembanyama briefly exited the game with an apparent ankle injury.

Wembanyama returned and helped the Spurs hold on. San Antonio outscored Dallas by 23 points during his 34 minutes, and got outscored by 22 in the 14 minutes back-up center Luke Kornet was playing.

Not only was Wembanyama temporarily hobbled, he also revealed after the game that he's been dealing with an illness . He said he was still sick Wednesday, but no longer felt as weak as he did while dealing with a virus:

"I haven't been feeling great lately. I've been sick. Today felt like I was getting my legs back. It should be more like this more often."

Wembanyama posted 12 points on 5-of-15 shooting with 11 rebounds, 5 assists and 3 blocks in his previous game, a win over the Utah Jazz. In the game directly before that, he dropped 43 in another win over the Minnesota Timberwolves. That was the second-highest scoring game of his career, and is now the third-highest.

The win improves the Spurs' record to 6-2, tied for fourth-best in a competitive Western Conference. The Mavericks are now tied for 10th at 4-4.