Wembanyama returns from three-game absence to help Spurs rally past Warriors, 104-94

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama scored 25 points, Harrison Barnes had 22 and the San Antonio Spurs overcame a 17-point third-quarter deficit to beat the Golden State Warriors 104-94 on Saturday night.

Trailing 81-64 with 1:55 left in the third quarter, San Antonio closed the game on a 40-13 run to win three straight for the first time since January 2021.

Wembanyama added nine assists, seven rebounds and three blocks in his return from a three-game absence with a bruised right knee.

San Antonio rookie Stephon Castle added 19 points and stole the dribble from Golden State's Stephen Curry behind the 3-point line with 1:46 remaining to preserve an eight-point lead.

Andrew Wiggins had 20 points and Curry had 14 points for the Warriors, who had won two straight. Trayce Jackson-Davis added 12 points and eight rebounds.

San Antonio went on an 11-0 run for a 97-90 lead with Castle and Wembanyama accounting for all but two points. Golden State was held scoreless for 4 1/2 minutes and did not make a field goal for 5:19.

Warriors: Golden State's bench, which was averaging 54 points, was held to 36 points.

Spurs: Prior to its fourth quarter surge, San Antonio’s only previously led for 22 seconds. Barnes hit the opening basket on a cutting layup 21 seconds into the first quarter. Golden State then went on an 11-0 run for a 20-8 lead.

Castle scored on a driving layup with 4:25 remaining to spark the Spurs' closing run. He followed that with a 3-pointer from 27 feet, Wembanyama drained a 3 from 31 feet and Castle made one of two free throws to put the Spurs up 97-90 with 2:28 remaining.

San Antonio outscored Golden State 33-13 in the final quarter.

Warriors: Play host to Brooklyn on Monday night.

Spurs: At Utah on Tuesday night.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/NBA

Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry (30) celebrates after a 3-point basket during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the San Antonio Spurs, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs' Harrison Barnes (40) tangles with Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry (30) and Gary Payton II (0) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

Golden State Warriors' Gary Payton II (0) goes to the basket against San Antonio Spurs' Harrison Barnes (40) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs guard Malaki Branham, center, tangles with Golden State Warriors' Brandin Podziemski, right, and Buddy Hield, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs' Tre Jones (33) drives against Golden State Warriors' Brandin Podziemski, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

Golden State Warriors' Trayce Jackson-Davis (32) goes to the basket against San Antonio Spurs' Harrison Barnes (40) and Victor Wembanyama, left, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama, left, drives against Golden State Warriors' Brandin Podziemski (2) and Kevon Looney, right, during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Saturday, Nov. 23, 2024, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

MARTIGNY, Switzerland (AP) — Switzerland will hold a memorial service Friday, part of a national day of mourning to honor the 40 people who were killed in an Alpine bar fire earlier this month during a New Year's celebration.

An additional 116 people were injured, many of them seriously, when the fire broke out less than two hours after midnight at the Le Constellation bar on Jan. 1.

Investigators have said they believe sparkling candles atop Champagne bottles ignited the fire in the resort town of Crans-Montana when they came too close to the ceiling. Authorities are looking into whether soundproofing material on the ceiling conformed with regulations and whether the candles were permitted for use in the bar. Fire safety inspections hadn’t been carried out since 2019.

The severity of burns made it difficult to identify some victims, requiring families to supply authorities with DNA samples. Police have said many of the victims were in their teens to mid-20s.

Swiss authorities have opened a criminal investigation into the bar managers. The two are suspected of involuntary homicide, involuntary bodily harm and involuntarily causing a fire, according to the Valais region’s chief prosecutor.

As part of the national day of mourning, church bells across Switzerland will ring for five minutes, beginning at 2 p.m. local time Friday, and a minute of silence will be held.

The Rome prosecutor’s office has opened an investigation into the Crans-Montana fire, alleging manslaughter and arson, Italian media reported Thursday. An autopsy has been ordered for five of the six Italian victims and has been delegated to the prosecutors' offices in Milan, Bologna, and Genoa, where the bodies of the victims have been returned.

“What happened is not a disaster: It’s the result of too many people who didn’t do their job or who thought they were making easy money,” Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni said at a press conference on Friday. “Those responsible must be identified and prosecuted.”

Meloni said the State Attorney General’s Office has contacted the Swiss Attorney General to follow the investigation and confirmed that the Rome Prosecutor’s Office has started a separate probe.

“The families have my word that they will not be left alone while they seek justice,” she added.

The Paris prosecutor’s office Monday announced that it was opening a probe to assist the Swiss investigation and make it easier for families of French victims to communicate with Swiss investigators. Nine French citizens were killed, the youngest of them aged 14, and 23 others were injured.

The owners of the "Le Constellation" bar in Crans-Montana, where the deadly fire happened on New Year's Day, Jacques und Jessica Moretti from France, center, arrive with their lawyers Patrick Michod, Yael Hayat and Nicola Meier, to be auditioned by the Valais public prosecutor's office in Sion, Switzerland, Friday, January 9, 2026. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

Plaques bearing flags representing Switzerland, Romania, Italy, Portugal, Belgium, France, and Turkey are placed along with flowers and candles to honor the victims of the fire at the "Le Constellation" bar and lounge, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2026. (Cyril Zingaro/Keystone via AP)

Mourners gather around flowers and candles to commemorate the victims of the "Le Constellation" bar and lounge's fire, in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (Jean-Christophe Bott/Keystone via AP)

FILE - A child watches as an adult places a candle outside the sealed off Le Constellation bar in Crans-Montana, Swiss Alps, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 3, 2026, where a devastating fire left dead and injured during the New Year's celebrations. (AP Photo/Baz Ratner, File)