San Antonio, TX (Sports Network) - Tim Duncan turned in a vintage performance against an old rival, scoring 24 points and grabbing 11 rebounds as the Spurs downed the Suns, 102-91, on Sunday.
Tony Parker had 17 points and nine assists while DeJuan Blair scored 14 for the Spurs, who improved to 9-0 at home this season.
"Everybody made a conscious effort to play good defense," said Parker. "If you don't play good defense you're not going to be successful in this league."
Marcin Gortat paced the Suns, losers of four straight, with 24 points and 15 boards. Steve Nash added 20 points and 10 assists despite battling a bruised right quadriceps.
"Playing against Tim Duncan is a huge challenge," said Gortat. "He is one of the best post guys in the history of the NBA."
The Spurs have struggled to an 0-4 clip on the road this season, but continue to roll at home. On Sunday, they led by as many as 18 in the third before the fading Suns generated a spark.
The 39-year-old Grant Hill, who is himself battling a sore right quad, floated a layup over Duncan to cut the deficit to 10 midway through the quarter.
San Antonio maintained the edge, leading 78-68 after three, and Matt Bonner drained a corner three to make it 84-72 early in the fourth. The Suns countered with five straight, as rookie Markieff Morris hit a trey and Ronnie Price came up with a diving steal and found Shannon Brown for a layup. Price then followed a Blair reverse layup with a three, trimming the Suns' deficit to 86-80 with 8 1/2 minutes to play.
Duncan, though, kept Phoenix at bay, nailing a jumper for an 89-80 lead seconds later and sealing the victory with a 17-footer in the closing minutes.
The last time the Spurs started out a season with at least nine straight wins at the AT&T Center was the 2007-08 campaign, when they started 13-0...The Suns kicked off a five-game road trip on Sunday. They will also visit Chicago, New York, Boston and Dallas on the difficult trek.
San Antonio Spurs Defeat Phoenix Suns, 102-91 - Bright Side Of The Sun
In a movie we've all seen before, the Phoenix Suns lacked the firepower necessary to climb back from a first half 14-point deficit to the San Antonio Spurs. Making the game just barely close enough to keep the fans watching and anticipating throughout, the Suns managed to claw back from a first half deficit to 5 points, with 5 minutes left in the game, when everything fell apart again.