Wembanyama has career highs of 52 points, 24 rebounds as Spurs hold off Mavericks 112-111

SAN ANTONIO (AP) — Victor Wembanyama had a career highs of 52 points and 24 rebounds along with eight blocks to power the San Antonio Spurs past the Dallas Mavericks 112-111 on Wednesday night.

Wembanyama had 29 points, 15 rebounds and five blocks in the first half to become the first player since the NBA’s play-by-play era began in 1996-1997 with at least 25 points, 10 rebounds and five blocks in a half.

Kyrie Irving, who had 29 points, missed a contested 15-foot, turnaround jumper with three seconds remaining as Dallas nearly spoiled Wembanyama's milestone game.

Dylan Harper had 21 points and Stephon Castle had 17 points and 10 rebounds in San Antonio's sixth straight win.

Naji Marshall scored 22 points, P.J. Washington had 21 points and Cooper Flagg added 19 for Dallas.

Wembanyama had two putbacks in the final 2:39 but also was 1 for 4 in free throws in the final 2:10.

San Antonio was a plus-23 when Wembanyama was on the court and minus-22 when he was subbed out.

Wembanyama had a torrid start, scoring 10 of San Antonio's first 12 points on a pair of dunks and six free throws. He closed the first quarter with 15 points, nine rebounds, two blocks, two steals and an assist.

The Mavericks capitalized when Wembanyama subbed out three minutes into the second quarter, going on a 12-1 run to cut the Spurs' lead to 49-48.

Wembanyama returned 4 1/2 minutes later.

Wembanyama had three blocks in 13 seconds on the same possession, sending shots by Flagg and Washington flying out of bounds before his third was captured by De'Aaron Fox with 3:38 remaining in the first half.

Mavericks: Host Utah on Friday night.

Spurs: At Sacramento on Friday night.

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San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, center, tangles with Dallas Mavericks' Kyrie Irving, right, and Daniel Gafford (21) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama, center, attempts to block a shot by Dallas Mavericks forward Caleb Martin (16) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

San Antonio Spurs guard De'Aaron Fox (4) goes to the basket against Dallas Mavericks' Cooper Flagg (32) and Daniel Gafford (21) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

Dallas Mavericks forward P.J. Washington Jr. (25) goes to the basket against San Antonio Spurs center Victor Wembanyama (1) during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

Dallas Mavericks' Daniel Gafford, right, goes to the basket against San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Wednesday, Nov. 4, 2026, in San Antonio. (AP Photo/Darren Abate)

Alan Jones, the Australian who became the first driver to win a Formula 1 title with Williams, has died, his family said Thursday.

Jones, the 1980 Formula 1 world champion, died aged 80 after a brief illness.

“We are extremely saddened to announce the passing of our beloved Alan,” his wife, Amanda, said in a statement. “He will be dearly missed and fondly remembered by those closest to him, as well as the many fans whose support he was always grateful for.”

Jones, an Australian Motorsport Hall of Fame and Sport Australia Hall of Fame inductee born in Melbourne in 1946, was the second and so far last Australian to win the Formula 1 world title, the highlight of an F1 career that featured 12 victories and 24 podium finishes.

Jack Brabham won F1 world drivers' championships for Australia in 1959, 1960 and 1966.

Jones was known for his aggressive driving style and abrasive personality. “If someone passed me, I took it personally,” he said on a 2019 podcast.

In an era when deaths and serious injuries weren’t uncommon in F1, Jones started each year by checking his life insurance and making travel plans for his wife to return to Australia if he was killed, but said he never personally feared death in a race.

“I never worried about the dangers,” he said. “I worried about the money.”

Jones found the right team with Williams, whose founder Frank Williams was adept at defusing his temper and keeping him focused. His driving style and physical strength were a good fit for the team’s FW07 car.

Jones didn’t seek to make friends with other F1 drivers.

“They were just things that had to be passed,” was how he described his rivals in the 2019 podcast “Beyond The Grid.” After one public feud with his Argentinian teammate Carlos Reutemann, Jones needed a police escort for his next race in Argentina.

Disappointed that Ferrari had gone back on what Jones later claimed was a signed contract for him to drive for the Italian team in 1977, he bore a grudge.

“When I used to drive down pit lane and they were working on their cars, I’d give them a little wave,” he said later. “Now, I might have only used one finger, but it was a wave!”

Jones grew up in Australia as the son of a successful amateur racing driver and moved to Britain in the late 1960s, funding his journey toward F1 by buying and selling old vans.

Jones drove for a series of small teams when he arrived in F1. His first win for Shadow in 1977 from 14th on the grid came as such a surprise to organizers of the Austrian Grand Prix that they hadn’t prepared a recording of the Australian national anthem for the podium ceremony. Jones later recalled that “a drunk played ‘Happy Birthday’ on a trumpet” instead.

After an unsuccessful title defense in 1981 — Jones believed he’d driven better than before but the car let him down — he headed back to Australia and bought a farm. Homesickness and a dislike for the British weather played a part.

Still, Jones was soon bored of his new life as a cattle breeder and made a one-off F1 comeback in 1983 with Arrows before returning with Haas — no relation to the current F1 team of the same name. The car wasn’t competitive and Jones had a best finish of fourth before leaving F1 again in 1986.

Away from F1, Jones won the 1978 Can-Am sportscar title and was third in his only IndyCar race in 1983. Jones kept racing in Australia’s V8 Supercars series until 2002, when he was 55.

Jones stayed around the paddock as a TV commentator and race steward but was critical of modern drivers, who he called “prima donnas” and “too corporate.”

AP Sports Writer Dennis Passa contributed from Brisbane, Australia.

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FILE -Australian F1 driver Alan Jones, sits in the pit complex before the Qualifying round of the GP Masters at Kylami race circuit in Johannesburg, South Africa, Saturday, Nov. 12, 2005. (AP Photo/Themba Hadebe, File)

FILE -Three legends of Formula One racing and all ex world champions from left Alan Jones, Australia, Stirling Moss, Great Britain and Jack Brabham, Australia in discussion at the track in Melbourne, March 7, 1996.(AP Photo/Steve Holland, File)