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San Antonio Spurs and Houston Rockets prepare to meet at the Moody Center in Austin in the early hours of Saturday, October 24, 2026, with tip-off scheduled for 3:30 a.m. French time (Friday night local time). Both rivals enter the matchup following contrasting opening nights, with Houston securing a comfortable victory while San Antonio dropped a double-digit decision against Oklahoma City.
Contrasting Openers Shape the Austin Showdown
Houston opened its campaign by overpowering Dallas 128-110 behind a dominant second quarter. The Rockets outscored their opponents 38-12 in the period to build a 70-38 halftime lead before extending their margin to 37 points. Kevin Durant and Jabari Smith Jr. led the offense with 30 points apiece, while Alperen Sengun added 23 points and 10 rebounds. Returning from a missed season due to a torn ACL, Fred VanVleet orchestrated the floor with 11 assists.
San Antonio experienced a much tougher start against Oklahoma City, falling 116-104 after trailing by as many as 26 points. Victor Wembanyama struggled through a difficult shooting night, converting just 1 of 13 attempts from the field and scoring 10 of his 12 points from the free-throw line. Despite the offensive struggles, the French center recorded 13 rebounds and 6 blocks. The Spurs cut a 21-point halftime deficit to single digits with a 23-9 run to open the third quarter, but the initial hole proved too deep to overcome.
Shooting Efficiency Separates the Texas Rivals
The statistical breakdown from opening night highlights a glaring discrepancy in perimeter shooting. Houston converted 16 of its 36 attempts from beyond the arc for 44.4 percent accuracy, whereas San Antonio managed just 10 makes on 37 tries, shooting 27 percent from distance. Overall field-goal percentages reflected the same gap, with the Rockets shooting 53.4 percent compared to the Spurs’ 38.7 percent.
Despite the shooting woes, San Antonio controlled the glass and took care of the basketball better than their opponents, grabbing 45 rebounds and committing 14 turnovers against Houston’s 16. The Spurs enter the matchup looking to bounce back from an opening defeat that contrasts sharply with their 62-20 record from the previous regular season, where they reached the conference finals before falling to New York in the Finals.
Injury Reports and Roster Availability in Austin
Projected starting lineups feature De’Aaron Fox, Stephon Castle, Harper, Devin Vassell, and Victor Wembanyama for San Antonio, while Houston is expected to counter with Fred VanVleet, Thompson, Kevin Durant, Jabari Smith Jr., and Alperen Sengun.
Historical Head-to-Head and Recent Series Trends
Last season’s four-game regular-season series favored the Spurs, who took three victories by margins of 11, 12, and 25 points. Houston’s lone win came on January 20, 2026, when the Rockets claimed a 111-106 victory at the Toyota Center. San Antonio answered eight days later with a 111-99 road win before closing the season series with a 145-120 rout on March 8, 2026. Across all historical regular-season meetings, San Antonio holds a 122-101 edge over their rivals.
Questions Remaining Before Tip-Off
Whether Victor Wembanyama can break out of his shooting slump against Kevin Durant’s defense remains the central question of the night. Observers are also watching whether Houston can maintain its blistering outside shooting away from the Toyota Center, and how head coach Ime Udoka manages his frontcourt rotation if Steven Adams is ruled out.
Worth a look
