Tony Parker scored 31 points and seven assists to lead the San Antonio Spurs to register a win over the Phoenix Suns 108-99 on Saturday night.
''He is unbelievable,'' The Associated Press quoted Manu Ginobili as saying. ''I cannot say he became a fourth-quarter finisher this year because of how he played last year, especially in the first two months. But he is in that point of his career where he is so confident. He is doing so good that he can relax a little bit in the first half then when we need him, he starts making those jumpers and takes over.''
For the Spurs, who have won 16 straight games at home, Ginobili added 20 points, Tiago Splitter scored 13 points and chipped in eight rebounds, Boris Diaw had 11 points and Stephen Jackson finished with 10 points and six rebounds.
For the Suns, the top scorer Michael Beasley scored 25 points off the bench while Jared Dudley added 23 points and five rebounds.
''He's their best player,'' Dudley commented on Parker. ''He's their best offensive threat. He knows their offense. If they don't have him, I know the Spurs are always good, but they can't win without him.''
The Spurs and the Suns scored 26 points apiece in the fiercely fought first quarter. In the second quarter, the Suns outscored the Spurs 33-30 to enter the second half with three points.
In the third quarter, the Spurs scored 26 points and stopped the Suns at 22 to turn the game and take a one-point lead in the game.
The Spurs forced three turnovers to take 96-88 lead with 6:21 remaining. Parker added four points and an assist in the 7-0 run.
''Over the last few years it is becoming my team and coach Pop is always challenging me to become the franchise player who closes games and makes good decisions with the ball offensively for myself and my teammates,'' Parker said. ''I always take to heart Pop's challenges.''
The Spurs' defense limited the Suns to 17 points in the fourth quarter while scoring 27 against them to win the eighth straight game.
''They have history,'' Beasley said. ''They just know how to win. The same guys have been here for the last hundred years. They know how to play with each other. They've won titles on top of titles. We've got to be able to take care of the ball, at the very least get a shot.''
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