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4 Takeaways: Amen Thompson block seals Rockets' win over Spurs in Austin

Houston's guard turns back Victor Wembanyama, Kevin Durant returns to Austin and more from Friday's big in-state victory.

Brian Martin

Brian Martin

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Game Recap: Rockets 114, Spurs 110

Hoops fans at the University of Texas in Austin were treated to a thriller in an all-Texas matchup in the state capital as the Rockets outlasted the Spurs 114-110 at the Moody Center.

Not only was this a homecoming game for former Longhorn star Kevin Durant, it was also a clash of two Western Conference heavyweights who both have designs on playing well into the spring of 2027.

The back-and-forth contest featured 14 lead changes and 11 ties. While the Rockets led by as many as 11 early in the second quarter, the Spurs kept charging back, regaining the lead multiple times but never by more than a single point.

It all led to an exhilarating finish that featured an alley-oop connection from De’Aaron Fox to Victor Wembanyama, a clutch 3-pointer from Durant, a poster dunk from Dylan Harper and a game-saving block from Amen Thompson.

With the win, the Rockets improved to 2-0 while the defending Western Conference champion Spurs fell to 0-2.

“Although it’s early, this is a championship-caliber squad who was in the Finals last year,” said Durant. “An early-season test is always good. We’re not going to bank on this, but we can look at this and get some film from it and see how we can get better. … Hopefully we can build off this.”

Here are four takeaways from Friday’s Rockets win:

1. “Rejected by Thompson! Rejected by Thompson! Rockets win!”

That was the call from Prime Video’s Kevin Harlan as Thompson sealed the Houston win with an incredible block on Wembanyama in the closing seconds.

Thompson, who earned All-Defensive First Team honors in 2025, showed why he is considered one of the league’s top defenders and most elite athletes.

“When Wemby caught the ball, I just thought he was gonna be tall man and try to rise over the top,” Durant said. “And that’s probably what he thought, but Twin is a freak athlete. It’s insane how he got up so quick to block that shot against a 7-5 guy being 6-7. Man, what a game-saving block.”

His reaction time to elevate in time to contest the shot, his quick leap to make up for Wembanyama’s 10-inch height advantage, and his full extension to meet the shot at its apex and reject it showcase a combination of skill and athleticism that few possess.

“There’s not many people on the planet making that play on Wemby, which is why he is the special player that he is,” said Fred VanVleet of Thompson.

After the preseason gave us a leading assist of the year candidate from Nikola Jokić, Thompson set a high bar for the block of the year conversation on just the fourth night of the 2026-27 season.

2. KD homecoming

Two decades ago, Kevin Durant thrilled fans in Austin while donning the burnt orange jersey for the University of Texas. He averaged 25.8 points per game and led the Longhorns to the second round of the NCAA Tournament, before becoming the No. 2 pick in the 2007 NBA Draft.

The building has changed. KD played at the Frank Erwin Center, which was replaced by the Moody Center — the site of Friday’s contest on the university campus.

The number has changed. KD rocked the No. 35 during his lone season at UT, and carried that number into the start of his NBA career, but he now sports No. 7 for the Rockets.

But he is still Kevin Durant. And his game remains as smooth as ever.

This was Durant’s second homecoming game in Austin. As a member of the Phoenix Suns in 2024, he put up 22 points with five rebounds and three 3-pointers in a 120-109 loss to the Spurs.

He’s now 1-1 back on his old stomping grounds after posting 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists on Friday. That included a clutch 3-pointer with 1:34 to play to extend Houston’s lead to four after a Wembanyama alley-oop cut the lead to one.

“This is a dream come true, a blessing to be doing this every day,” Durant said after the win. “This is something I dreamt about as a kid, but to come back to the University of Texas and play a game here and see all these fans that supported me the last 20 years, it’s amazing.”

3. Welcome back, FVV

The opening week of the 2026-27 season has seen a number of star players make their return to the court after devastating injuries cost them all of last season. That list includes Damian Lillard, Tyrese Haliburton, Kyrie Irving and VanVleet, who is just 13 months removed from tearing the ACL in his right knee.

Through two games, VanVleet has proven why he was so missed by the Rockets last season with these two numbers: 16 assists, 0 turnovers.

While VanVleet admits that he’s still getting his legs under him as he works his way back — he’s averaging 10 points on 33.3% shooting with 2.5 3-pointers made per game — his decision making and leadership are right on point.

“[He’s] somebody that can stretch the floor all the way to the hashmark,” Durant said. “Just a floor general, it’s good for the whole team, not just me.”

After spending last season on the sidelines as a quasi-assistant coach, VanVleet is happy to be able to make an impact on the court.

“Your voice only goes so far,” he said. “I felt like a coach. I definitely learned that I don’t want to be a coach last year. I was having migraines. I was going home more angry and hurt while not playing than I was from playing.”

4. Sengun vs. Wemby

Coming off the worst shooting performance of his career in San Antonio’s season-opener — 1-for-13 overall, 0-for-4 from deep — Wembanyama bounced back on Friday with 25 points on 9-for-21 shooting (including 2-for-6 from 3), 13 rebounds and two blocks.

But it was his final shot attempt — and the block by Thompson — that will be remembered most from Friday night as the Spurs dropped to 0-2 on the season.

Countering Wembanyama for the Rockets was Alperen Sengun, who stuffed the stat sheet with 29 points, seven rebounds and seven blocks in 36 minutes. But it wasn’t just how many points Sengun scored, but when and how he scored them.

Fourteen of his 29 points came in the fourth quarter as the Rockets repeatedly went to Sengun to either score himself (4-for-6 shooting) or set up others (two assists)

“[The Spurs] kept making a run and we just kept giving Alpi the ball,” said VanVleet “They weren’t sending much help – they were locked in on Kevin and they weren’t really helping much off me, so between Alpi and Amen, those guys gotta be able to take advantage if they’re getting single coverage.

“So just keep feeding the big fella and he took us home.”

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