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San Antonio Express-News

Spurs fans rose to their feet for a loud ovation, and from the public-address loudspeaker the strains of "Sweet Home Alabama" were heard, which meant only one thing: Robert Horry was back in action for the Spurs.

Horry hadn't played since March 21 when he entered Tuesday's Game 2 of the Spurs' Western Conference first-round playoff series against Phoenix at the AT&T Center with 4:45 remaining in the first half.

"It felt great," Horry said. "It was good just to get a couple of minutes."

It would be Horry's only stint of the game, and he missed the only shot he took in his 3 minutes and 24 seconds. He did, however, have one memorable moment, blocking a point-blank Shaquille O'Neal shot with 3:25 left in the second period.

"That felt good," he said. "One thing I can do now and then is sneak in and get a block. I played with Shaq for seven years, so I know some of his moves down there on the block."

He's No. 4: Spurs forward Bruce Bowen, runner-up in voting for Defensive Player of the Year the previous two seasons, finished fourth Tuesday.
Boston's Kevin Garnett was this season's winner. "It wasn't a surprise that it went to a big man," Bowen said. "Except for the year (Ron) Artest won, it has gone to a big man most of the time."

Tim Duncan was ninth in voting by a 124-member media panel.

Politics in play: Popovich spent part of his pregame time watching election returns from the Pennsylvania Democratic primary election.

Popovich's response to Shaquille O'Neal's post-Game 1 complaints about the Spurs being "floppers" was to compare such talk to diversionary tactics in the political arena, saying he would rather talk about real issues, such as universal health care.

Suns point guard Steve Nash, a Canadian, knows universal health care and likes it.

"I think it's fantastic," he said. "No one is left behind, unless you need an MRI for a Suns-Spurs game. That might take you six months. Other than that, we're good."

Recycler: Nash, the two-time Most Valuable Player, released a commercial Tuesday, which was Earth Day, promoting his new Nike sneaker, the "Nike Trash Talk," which is made of recycled materials.

Nash's production company, Meathawk, produced the spot, which features Nash as the "$60 million man" and plays on his numerous on-court collisions.

"I'm the first athlete ever to wear a recycled high-performance shoe," Nash said, "and since today is Earth Day, I created a viral commercial for the shoe. Filmmaking, obviously, with my production company, is a passion of mine, and the environment is a passion of mine, too. To put the two together is a lot of fun."

-- Mike Monroe

Player spotlight: If Tony Parker experienced any pain from his collision with Shaquille O'Neal in the first half, he did a masterful job hiding it. In the first half, Parker was a one-man fastbreak, scoring a team-high 21 points on seven layups, one jumper and five free throws. Without Parker blowing past the Suns, the Spurs undoubtedly would have trailed at the half by much more than seven points.

Frozen moment: Leading by just six with less than two minutes left, the Spurs needed an easy bucket in the worst way. They got it when Manu Ginobili raced into the paint only to dump the ball off to Tim Duncan when the Suns' Amare Stoudemire closed in. Duncan dunked to give the Spurs a 99-91 edge with 1:47 left. Ginobili finished with 29 points, but it was his third and final assist that may have been the game's biggest play.

How the game was won: After trailing by seven at halftime, the Spurs took control by outscoring the Suns 27-11 in the third period. In the first half, the Spurs' big three of Tim Duncan, Manu Ginobili and Tony Parker scored 51 of their team's 54 points. But Michael Finley came alive after the break, hitting 4 of 5 shots from the field for 8 points in the third quarter. Aiding Finley in the turnaround were reserves Ime Udoka and Brent Barry, who combined for 11 points. The Suns, meanwhile, missed 15 of their 18 shots in the period, which ended with the Spurs leading 81-72. “We played pretty good defense, and they also missed shots,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said.

Tom Orsborn