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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

After a first half Tuesday in which Tim Duncan, Tony Parker and Manu Ginobili had scored all but three of the Spurs' 54 points — Duncan had 13, Parker 21 and Ginobili 17 — the Spurs were intent on finding a way to lessen the load of the Big Three in Game 2 of their Western Conference playoff series against the Phoenix Suns.

Before he sent the Spurs back out for the third quarter, coach Gregg Popovich diagrammed a play designed to get an open shot for Michael Finley, who had missed his only attempt of the first two periods.

With possession to start the second half because the Suns had won the opening tip, the Spurs got into the set immediately and worked it to perfection. Finley came off a pindown on the baseline for a wide-open 15-footer that hit nothing but net.

After Kurt Thomas rebounded a Shaquille O'Neal miss, the Spurs ran a second play for Finley. This time he nailed a 20-footer from the right baseline.

Suddenly, the Suns' defense had another shooter to be concerned about, and the Spurs had another option.

Before the period ended, Finley had scored eight points and the Spurs had turned an eight-point deficit into a nine-point lead heading to the final quarter of their 102-96 victory at the AT&T Center.

The Spurs got a second surge from the bench in their third-period comeback when Ime Udoka chipped in six points.

"We were trying to get Fin's confidence going," said point guard Parker. "Fin and Ime got going a little bit in the third quarter, and that helped us a lot."

Finley was eager to get the chance to atone for an empty first half and thrilled that Popovich called his number right out of the halftime.

"I had a good look at the basket and just knocked it down," Finley said. "Coach told me to just stick with it. We know how this game is played. ... We know how to get out of ruts."

Udoka scored six-straight points near the end of the third, getting a putback basket, two free throws and a layin off a slick feed from Duncan.

The first-year Spurs player was shocked to learn the Big Three had carried such a huge scoring load in the first half.

"I didn't even realize that," Udoka said. "It's always good to take pressure off them so Phoenix can't hone in on just those three guys. Obviously, you saw how Fin came out and gave us a big lift. That got some other guys involved. Then we went to a small lineup and got running. You're going to get different looks if you don't have to set up every time.

"It's always good to take pressure off those three guys, because when it comes down to it, they're the guys that are going to be taking the shots when the game's on the line."

Popovich understood his three offensive stars would not be able to duplicate their first-half production, and that it likely would not be enough, even if they did.

"They were really important," he said of the play of Finley and Udoka in the third. "We need everyone to score. Bench guys have to contribute, perimeter guys have to help you win. The entire game can't be on the shoulders of your so-called stars. Teams win series because everyone participates, offensively and defensively."

NEW ORLEANS, Nov. 9 (AP) -- Tim Duncan smirked at the notion that Tony Parker needed time to regain his form after sitting out much of the preseason.

"His rhythm's been back. He hasn't lost it. He's been going 100 miles an hour since he's been back,'' Duncan said. "I don't know if he's been breathing hard here and there, but he's been looking good.''

It was hard to argue with that on Friday night, when Parker scored early, often and from all over the court in a 27-point effort that led the San Antonio Spurs to a 97-85 victory over the New Orleans Hornets.

After Parker spent the summer playing with the French national team, Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich took it easy on his star point guard during training camp and let him sit out the first few preseason games. It appears to have worked.

Parker is the only member of the Spurs to score 15 points or more in each of San Antonio's first six games. He scored a season-high 23 points in San Antonio's victory over Miami on Wednesday, only to surpass it against Chris Paul in New Orleans two nights later.

"Every time you play one of the best point guards it's good motivation,'' Parker said. "But for me personally, I just try to get back in shape, get back in my rhythm, because I didn't play a lot in the preseason and it felt great tonight.''

Duncan made 11 of 14 shots to finish with 24 points and 12 rebounds. Manu Ginobili scored 14 and fellow Argentinian Fabricio Oberto added 13 points to help the Spurs maintain a double-digit lead through most of the second half.

"I just got some shots to fall early,'' Duncan said. "When you do that, things start feeling a little better and those shots don't look as daunting as they do when you miss a couple at the beginning.''

Chris Paul scored 18 to lead New Orleans, which has lost two straight after winning its first four. David West scored 15 points and Tyson Chandler grabbed 11 rebounds.

After their impressive start to the season, the Hornets looked at their home date with the defending champs as a chance to measure their improvement from last season, when New Orleans was 0-4 against the Spurs.

"The first quarter was pretty good,'' Hornets coach Byron Scott said. "They just don't take a night off. If you beat them, it's because you were better than them that night. It's not because they gave it to you.''

By the third quarter, it became clear that San Antonio still had the Hornets' number.

The Spurs began to pull away with a 12-2 run led by Ginobili, whose eight points during the surge included a driving scoop shot and a 3-pointer as he was fouled.

Very little was going right for New Orleans, which was struggling even to hit foul shots. The Hornets began turning the ball over as they attempted to force a faster tempo. A particularly demoralizing moment came when Chandler fought for a difficult rebound, only to miss Paul with his outlet pass. Parker ended up with the ball and burst into the lane for a double-clutch reverse layup that made it 64-49.

"We had a hard time executing what we wanted to accomplish out there,'' Chandler said. "A good team like that makes you pay for your small mistakes.''

San Antonio was shooting so well there wasn't much New Orleans could do anyway. The Spurs hit 57.6 percent of their shots through three quarters and led by as much as 21 before taking an 81-63 lead into the final period.

New Orleans, a hot-shooting team through their opening four wins, seemed to have lost their range. They were 4-of-15 shooting on 3-pointers and shot 43.2 percent for the game.

Peja Stojakovic, who hit 10 3-pointers in a victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Tuesday, made only one of six shots while guarded by Bruce Bowen, who Popovich credited with suffocating defense.

San Antonio also outrebounded New Orleans 42-37

Parker, who also finished with eight assists, scored 11 of San Antonio's first 21 points, hitting on everything from a driving double-pump scoop in the lane to an open 3-pointer from the corner. He reached 21 points by the end of the second quarter, helping the Spurs erase an early nine-point deficit and go into halftime with a 52-45 lead.

"He's our guy that gets to the basket,'' Duncan said. "He controls the tempo and when he's going like that it makes everything easy for us.''

Notes: Spurs G Brent Barry, who sprained his right ankle diving for a ball during a victory against Miami on Wednesday, did not play. ... New Orleans came in having won only four of its last 20 games against San Antonio. ... Attendance was 15,297, the largest crowd in three games at New Orleans arena since the Hornets returned full-time from their two-year temporary stay in Oklahoma City after Hurricane Katrina.

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SAN ANTONIO, Nov. 7 (AP) -- There was Manu Ginobili, hitting yet another 3-pointer for the San Antonio Spurs and scoring 25 points. And there were the Miami Heat, who looked as if, even if they'd had Dwyane Wade back, it might not have been enough.

"Ginobili is a handful,'' Heat coach Pat Riley said Wednesday night after his team lost 88-78 and fell to 0-4 this season. "He's unpredictable. It's hard to defend him.''

But, even adding Tony Parker's 23 points to the mix, Spurs coach Gregg Popovich wasn't ready to claim too much credit.

"Of course you don't take huge satisfaction out of the win with Dwyane Wade not there,'' Popovich said. "But we're going to take the win, we worked hard for it. But we realize they were pretty undermanned.''

Riley nor the team would hide behind the Wade excuse, but they did acknowledge what the recovering star creates for the Heat. Riley said Wade has been participating in full-contact drills over the last two or three days.

"I think that's where (the Spurs), a lot of times they scored in the last six or seven seconds of the shot clock with'' Parker and Ginobili, Riley said. "Right now, when we break down, we don't have anybody that's doing that. He happens to be sitting on the bench. That's what we used to do.''

Ginobili hit four of the Spurs' seven 3-pointers and scored 12 points in the third quarter, after San Antonio led by only one at halftime.

"In the first half we didn't have it, that was pretty obvious,'' Ginobili said. "Then in the third quarter we tried to change the pace a little bit - play more, play faster, better, more passes - and I think it worked. We changed the attitude totally in the third quarter.''

Tim Duncan scored 12 points and Francisco Elson had 12 points and 14 rebounds for San Antonio. Parker had eight assists and Duncan grabbed eight rebounds.

The Spurs bounced back from their first loss of the season Tuesday night in Houston.

Shaquille O'Neal led the Heat with 17 points. Ricky Davis had 14 and Udonis Haslem scored 10 points and grabbed nine rebounds. And while the Heat anxiously await Wade's return, they're still doing their best without him.

"We all have to come together as a team without D-Wade right now. We have to find ourselves,'' said Smush Parker. "And when he comes back it's going to be a tremendous help to us.''

For most of the second half, the game between the most recent two NBA champions wasn't much of a matchup. The Spurs were up by as many as 17.

"At times we played pretty good. But games like this, we've just got to go back to the lab and stay positive,'' O'Neal said. "Right now, it's character time.''

After O'Neal caught an alley-oop pass from Jason Williams for a dunk to open the third quarter, the Spurs went on a 10-2 run spearheaded by Ginobili, who hit a free throw after exchanging words with Williams after the Spurs guard was fouled, then added a basket and a 3-pointer.

"The edge on our defense that we had in the first half - that we felt was good enough to win - was flat, soft,'' Riley said.

The Spurs went ahead for good, 41-40, off a jumper from Francisco Oberto with 11:28 left in the third.

Ginobili's third 3 of the night boosted the lead to 56-44 with 6:03 left. His fourth 3, just 47 seconds later, made it 59-46.

After trailing by as many as 15, the Heat inched their way back within five. Davis scored seven points in the last 2:35 to lead a 10-2 Heat run to close the quarter.

The Spurs were up 65-58 heading into the final period.

And the Spurs opened the fourth with a 10-2 run that put them back up by 15 points.

The teams traded leads in the first half, with the Spurs up 23-21 after one and 39-38 at the break.

The Heat had a hard time containing Parker, who scored 12 points on 5-of-7 shooting in the first half, including a 3-pointer in the first quarter. It's a shot Parker, who is usually seen cutting through the lane on his way to the basket, has been testing out a bit more.

Haslem and Williams were each 4-of-5 in the first half, for eight points apiece.

Notes: Spurs G Brent Barry fell while diving for the ball early in the fourth quarter. He limped out of the arena accompanied but unassisted. The team said he sprained his right ankle. ... Heat G Wade was seen working out on the floor pregame. ... Spurs F Robert Horry was at the game but remained on the inactive list. He has been tending to personal business early this season. ... The Spurs outrebounded the Heat 42-33.

HOUSTON, Nov. 6(AP) -- Late in the first quarter against San Antonio, Yao Ming was already exhausted.

He focused on simple thoughts to keep going and ended up with his best game of the young season.

Yao had 28 points and 13 rebounds to help the Houston Rockets snap a four-game, home-court losing streak to San Antonio with a 89-81 win over the Spurs on Tuesday night.

After playing 38 minutes in Dallas on Monday, Yao often struggled to catch his breath against the Spurs. The Rockets led 64-56 after three quarters and Yao started the fourth, trying to put his fatigue out of his mind.

"I don't have time to think about that,'' Yao said. "I'm just telling myself, pick up my leg and run to the next step.''

Yao scored seven points and grabbed two rebounds in the final quarter. He flipped in two shots over Tim Duncan, then hit two free throws in the final 2:37 to keep the Rockets in control.

"Every year, Yao is getting better,'' said Duncan. "The Rockets showed their confidence in him, when they go through him at the end of the game like they did tonight. He made some big shots and was tough to stop.''

Yao hit 12 of 24 shots and also had six assists, his most complete game under new coach Rick Adelman. He's reached 20 points and 10 rebounds in three of Houston's four games.

Bonzi Wells added 14 points and 15 rebounds for Houston, which controlled Duncan and outrebounded the sluggish Spurs 55-28. Duncan scored 14 and grabbed 10 rebounds, but went only 5-for-15 from the field.

The Rockets had a 25-4 edge in offensive rebounds and took 17 more shots than the Spurs.

"That's about how hungry we were to win the game,'' Yao said.

Tracy McGrady struggled with his shooting, too, going 4-of-14 and scoring only 12. McGrady had nine rebounds and dished out six of the Rockets' season-high 25 assists. McGrady was treating a huge blister on the bottom of his right foot after the game.

Manu Ginobili scored 23 and Tony Parker added 21 for the Spurs. Beyond Duncan, no other Spur had more than six rebounds.

"It was a huge advantage that we gave up,'' Ginobili said. "It's pretty hard to win like that.''

The Rockets built a 45-32 lead in the first half, frustrating Duncan and outrebounding San Antonio 35-15. Guarded well by the 7-foot-6 Yao for most of the half, Duncan missed 8 of 9 shots.

Yao only matched up with Duncan after Chuck Hayes got cut over his right eye a minute into the game and backup forward Luis Scola picked up three quick fouls.

The Rockets took an 18-11 lead when 41-year-old Dikembe Mutombo drove down the lane for an unlikely dunk.

Hayes got six stitches and returned with a bandage over his eye, but the Spurs finished the first quarter with an 8-0 run.

Houston missed 25 of its first 37 shots, then finished the half with a 9-0 run. The Spurs' halftime point total was only four better than the franchise record low for a first half (28), set in Houston in 2005.

With the 6-6 Hayes guarding him again to start the third quarter, Duncan dropped in a hook shot and sank two free throws as San Antonio pulled to within seven. Yao kept Houston ahead, dropping in soft jumpers or drawing fouls and sinking free throws.

"I have always admired his game since he came into the league,'' Ginobili said of Yao. "He's an unbelievable player. He can do everything. He was inspired tonight.''

The Rockets led 61-52 when Yao went to the bench for a rest with 1:56 left in the third quarter. McGrady, shadowed all night by defensive specialist Bruce Bowen, hit a 3-pointer in last minute of the quarter to put Houston up 64-55.

Yao was back at the start of the fourth quarter and the Rockets stayed in control. Luther Head shot an airball from 3-point range, but Yao caught it underneath and dunked with 8:48 remaining for a 72-61 lead.

Ginobili intercepted a pass and drove for a dunk over Yao with 4:31 left to cut Houston's lead to 77-68. Brent Barry scored on San Antonio's next possession, but Mike James sank a pull-up jumper with 3:28 left to restore the 9-point lead.

Ginobili picked off another pass near the 3-minute mark and Ginobili sank two free throws. Yao answered with consecutive turnarounds over Duncan. He added two free throws on the Rockets' next trip down the floor.

Shane Battier put the game away with a 3-pointer with 1:05 remaining to put the Rockets up 87-75.

Notes: The Rockets went 9-for-21 from 3-point range (43 percent). ... Former Rocket Robert Horry was on the Spurs inactive list. ... Wells earned his 29th career double-double. ... Duncan has double-doubles in three of four games this season.

San Antonio 96, Sacramento 80

SAN ANTONIO, Nov. 2 (AP) -- Manu Ginobili got the signal from San Antonio Spurs teammate Tim Duncan and took off running.

By the time the Sacramento Kings had regrouped, Duncan was in the midst of hurling a court-length pass to Ginobili for an easy layup at the other end.

Welcome to Friday night football, Spurs style.

"I just obeyed orders and the defensive balance was not good, so I was just wide open,'' Ginobili said after the Spurs' 96-80 win over the Kings on Friday. "Yeah, he gave me a look. He's a big football fan.''

The long pass with 4:43 left in the first half that put the Spurs up 40-21 wasn't the only time the game looked like it should have been played on Astroturf. Spurs point guard Tony Parker went down hard at least three times in the first half. He also got into the passing game, throwing one out of bounds and into the second row of courtside seats.

Despite that error, the Spurs remained unbeaten. They are 3-0 for the first time since the 2000-01 season, when they finished with the best record in the league.

The Kings, currently without Mike Bibby and Ron Artest, have yet to win a game this season. They never led Friday and were down by as many as 29.

Duncan and Tony Parker had 15 points apiece. Offseason addition Ime Udoka had 14 points, including three 3-pointers, for San Antonio. Fabricio Oberto and Duncan each had 10 rebounds.

Kevin Martin scored 22 points for the Kings, followed by John Salmons with 14 points and nine rebounds. Brad Miller finished with 13 points.

The Spurs were up 17-10 after one quarter and 50-23 at the half. The Kings shot just 7-of-36 in the first half (19 percent).

"Under 20 percent from the field is not easy to do,'' Ginobili said.

The Kings set franchise record-lows for points scored in the half and for fewest field goals made in the first half. The previous lows were set in 1957 and 1987, respectively.

"Sure, they're frustrated, they don't like to play like that,'' said Sacramento coach Reggie Theus. "But there's nothing we can do about it except just keep fighting hard. That's it.''

While the Kings were shooting poorly early, the Spurs were playing with energy.

On the possession after Duncan's football throw, he blocked Francisco Garcia's shot, leading to a 3-pointer from Ginobili that put the Spurs up by 22 points.

Martin led the Kings with 11 points in the third quarter as the Kings outscored San Antonio 31-21.

"We had a pretty serious conversation in the locker room,'' Theus said. "The guys have to understand that you can't hide, you cannot hide on the floor, you've got to be accountable.''

Martin's fast-break layup off an assist from Salmons cut the Spurs' lead to 19 with 30 seconds left in the period. Salmons followed with a basket to make it 71-54 heading into the fourth.

"Second half, we had to show some kind of pride. We can't let them just continue to just trample all over us,'' Salmons said. "Tomorrow, just got to forget about this game, and just come out with a lot of energy.''

Sacramento plays the Mavericks in Dallas on Saturday.

The Kings got within 71-56 early in the fourth, but back-to-back 3s from Brent Barry and Udoka pushed the Spurs back to an 81-60 lead with 8:09 to play.

Matt Bonner had 13 points for San Antonio. Ginobili finished with 10.

While the Spurs are off to a good start, coach Gregg Popovich still has a few things to figure out, including his bench rotation.

"I feel very uncomfortable,'' he said. "I have no clue on how to sub them.''

On Friday, his star players gave him the chance to tinker a little bit, with most of them sitting out much of the fourth quarter.

After starting dismally, Sacramento finished 29-of-75 from the field (39 percent). It wasn't too much worse than the Spurs, who went 31-of-75 (41 percent.)

"Still want to see more than 39 percent for the game,'' Miller said. "You just got to try to build on the things. You know, look at the second half, why did we do better.''

Guard Beno Udrih, who was traded on Monday to Minnesota, then signed with Sacramento after the Timberwolves waived him, did not dress while still recovering from a broken left index finger he got last month during Spurs training camp.

Udrih won two rings with the Spurs, including last season, when he lost his spot as backup point guard to Tony Parker after Jacque Vaughn took over.

Notes: Popovich gave Udrih his championship ring before tip-off Friday. ... The Spurs were 4-0 against the Kings last season. ... Duncan has four 20-20 games against the Kings, more than against any other opponent. ... The Kings also outscored the Spurs in the fourth quarter, 26-25. ... The Spurs hit 12 3-pointers, including three each from Udoka and Bonner, and two from Michael Finley. ... The Spurs outrebounded the Kings 50-35.