SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Whether it's chess, a drawing contest or table tennis, San Antonio Spurs All-Star Victor Wembanyama hates to lose. A loss in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals to the Minnesota Timberwolves only magnified that loathing.
Wembanyama responded by setting a suffocating tone as San Antonio handed Minnesota its largest postseason loss in franchise history, beating the Timberwolves 133-95 on Wednesday night to even their series at one game apiece.
Despite posting 11 points, 15 rebounds and setting an NBA postseason record with 12 blocks, Wembanyama shouldered much of the blame for the Spurs' 104-102 loss to the Timberwolves on Monday in Game 1.
The 7-foot-4 All-Star knew he needed to do more, especially offensively.
Was there some anger and frustration and a desire to get back on the court for Game 2? Absolutely.
“There always is,” Wembanyama said. “In the playoffs, magnify that.”
What resulted was what Minnesota coach Chris Finch said was a punking before a raucous sellout crowd.
The Timberwolves were held to 35 points in the first half while shooting 7 for 24 from the field and 2 for 15 on 3-pointers.
Minnesota closed the game shooting 40% from the field, 30% on 3-pointers while committing 22 turnovers. San Antonio had a 58-36 scoring advantage in the paint, a 55-43 rebounding advantage and had nine blocked shots compared to two for Minnesota.
“We got beat in every way possible, it’s as simple as that,” Timberwolves forward Julius Randle said. “There’s not really much to say from this game. They outhustled us, out-physicaled us, executed, played better defensively, more energy. They just beat us in every way in this game. We’ve got to come back in the next game and be better.”
Game 3 is Friday in Minneapolis followed by Game 4 on Sunday at the Target Center.
The Spurs and Timberwolves went deep into their benches Wednesday with 10 minutes remaining in the game with only the margin of defeat undecided.
San Antonio's 38-point victory toppled Minnesota’s previous largest postseason defeat of 30 points to the Los Angeles Lakers on April 29, 2003.
“I know this team’s capable of doing all of this,” Wembanyama said. “To be honest, I’m expecting this kind of response from myself, from my teammates. So, I’m not surprised by any means and I’m just going to keep working so we approach more games like we did tonight.”
After blowing a nine-point lead in the fourth quarter Monday, Wembanyama and De'Aaron Fox both took accountability for the two-point loss.
Wembanyama andFox combined for only 21 points in Game 1. The All-Star duo was a combined 0 for 12 on 3-pointers with Wembanyama missing eight.
“They acknowledged it, them being the leaders on our team,” Spurs guard Stephon Castle said. “Coming out of Game 1, I mean, it’s going to happen. You're going to have bad shooting nights, but I mean, we have nothing but confidence in those two. So, I expect them to play well the rest of the series like they did tonight.”
Wembanyama set the tone early in Game 2, scoring seven points on 3-for-4 shooting.
The Spurs missed their first three shots, but Wembanyama followed the third attempt by flying through the lane and throwing down a right-handed dunk to open the scoring.
Wembanyama had 14 points and nine rebounds in the first half while leading a defensive effort that limited Minnesota to 35 points, the fewest points by a San Antonio opponent in the first half of a playoff game since Memphis had 31 in 2013.
“I just think we respond well to adversity,” Castle said. “I think we’ve done that all year. I mean, I don’t think we were too shell shocked coming out of Game 1. I think we knew why we lost Game 1 and we addressed it right away. And I feel like that’s what carried us through tonight.”
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Minnesota Timberwolves forward Julius Randle (30), guard Bones Hyland (8), guard Anthony Edwards (5) and center Naz Reid (11) watch from the bench during the second half in Game 2 of a second-round NBA playoffs basketball series against the San Antonio Spurs in San Antonio, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama, right, and forward Keldon Johnson, second from right, reacts to a play with teammates during the second half in Game 2 of a second-round NBA playoffs basketball series against the Minnesota Timberwolves in San Antonio, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
San Antonio Spurs forward Julian Champagnie, right, is blocked by San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama, left, as he drives to the basket during the second half in Game 2 of a second-round NBA playoffs basketball series in San Antonio, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A grassroots Warsaw soccer club formed by fans more than a decade ago to resist aggressive nationalist stadium culture is hoping to find new relevance in Poland — a country whose president doesn't deny his own past participation in fights between football fans.
AKS Zły, short for Alternatywny Klub Sportowy Zły, or Alternative Sports Club Evil, was founded in 2015 by supporters of Warsaw’s main clubs Legia and Polonia. They decided to take a stand against hostile behavior they encountered in the stands and around stadiums at Polish matches.
The club, which has men’s and women’s teams, is still owned and run democratically by its fans.
“We decided to create a club that would be different, where all people, regardless of their sexual orientation, race or nationality, could feel good and welcome,” AKS Zły coordinator Jan Dziubecki told The Associated Press.
He said that fan culture in Poland has “drifted sharply to the right and openly hateful slogans are common.”
President Karol Nawrocki, backed by the nationalist conservative Law and Justice party, was elected last year. He’s known for his long standing allegiance to Lechia Gdańsk, a club from the northern city, and has attended its games since taking office.
Following reports during the election campaign that Nawrocki had taken part in a street brawl between soccer fans, he said he had been involved in many “noble” fights in his life.
While Nawrocki’s presidency might strengthen the kind of fan culture that AKS Zły was created to oppose, Dziubecki said that it might actually produce the opposite effect.
“Maybe more fans will come to our stadium again," he said with a smile.
Juliusz Wrzosek, owner of the Offside bar in Warsaw’s Praga district, was one of the founders of the club and can be seen selling tickets at the stadium entrance.
He said he was a lifelong fan of Legia Warszawa but eventually got kicked out of the more radical section because he refused to sing chants sending greetings to people serving prison terms. During the same period, his friends who supported Polonia, Legia’s rival, were getting marginalized for similar reasons. Together, they decided to create their own club.
“Because you have to support someone,” Wrzosek said.
His bar isn't only a meeting place for AKS Zły fans, but also a venue where the club occasionally organizes social events, often meant to commemorate an aspect of the local history of the Praga district. In March, it co-hosted an event honoring Stefan Okrzeja, a socialist worker who fought for Polish independence at the beginning of the 20th century.
“It bothered me that in Poland, a country with a great history of leftist and left-wing values, there isn’t a single club that is democratic, that doesn’t impose its own version of fan culture,” Wrzosek said.
At a recent women’s game in Poland’s second division, AKS Zły faced a stronger team from Słupca, but fans in the modest stadium in Praga were undaunted.
They sang songs welcoming the visitors and urging their own side to score to the rhythm of drums. Complaints about the referee were kept to a minimum and polite.
“It’s not just empty words when you say that the fans are the 12th player, because it really helps and motivates you to give more,” former AKS Zły player and now supporter Eliza Górska-Tran told The Associated Press.
The 37-year-old Górska-Tran, who attended the game with her wife and two young children, stressed the importance of the supportive community created around the club, which she helped to run after her playing days.
AKS Zły embraces LGBTQ+ and immigrant players. The club has always invested in the male and female teams equally. And, at its academy for kids, richer parents help cover the costs of poorer ones.
Górska-Tran said that fans staged a wedding ceremony for her and her partner at the stadium after they married in Scotland, where same sex marriage is legal, unlike in Poland.
“I also remember my last match before I got pregnant, it was an unforgettable experience,” she said. “There were flares, including rainbow-colored smoke, on the football pitch.”
Alicja Cichońska, who is in her seventh season playing for AKS Zły, said that she joined the club, because she had heard about the inclusive community built around it.
“Football should unite us all, not divide us, because there’s enough of that in society already,” she said.
Anti-fascist team scarves are collected at the Offside bar, while AKS Zly Praga soccer team fans gather at the Offside bar, in Praga district in Warsaw, Poland, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
AKS Zly Praga soccer team fans gather at the Offside bar, in Praga district in Warsaw, Poland, Friday, April 24, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
AKS Zly Praga players exercise during warmup before Women's II Liga Kobiet North soccer match between AKS Zly Praga and KKP Slupczanka Slupca, at the Don Pedro Arena stadium in Warsaw, Poland, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
AKS Zly Praga players talk in the dressing room during the Women's II Liga Kobiet North soccer match between AKS Zly Praga and KKP Slupczanka Słupca, at the Don Pedro Arena stadium in Warsaw, Poland, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
AKS Zly Praga's Natalia Pamieta shoots the ball during the Women's II Liga Kobiet North soccer match between AKS Zly Praga and KKP Slupczanka Slupca, at the Don Pedro Arena stadium in Warsaw, Poland, Saturday, April 25, 2026. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi)
