Parker scores 29 points, Duncan gets double-double in win

SAN ANTONIO (AP) -- San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich's ejection sparked the Spurs.

Tony Parker scored 29 points and San Antonio rallied to beat Golden State 107-96 on Tuesday night.

"We played with more energy in the second half," said reserve guard Beno Udrih, who scored 13 points. "[Popovich] got the technicals and that's when we said 'Let's go, guys. Let's pick it up,' and we got the win."

The Spurs outscored the Warriors 49-33 during the final 17:59 of the game for their fifth straight win.

Parker added seven assists for the Spurs (53-14), who stayed a half-game ahead of Dallas for the lead in the Southwest Division and the best record in the Western Conference. The Mavericks defeated Houston on Tuesday.

Tim Duncan had 21 points and 13 rebounds for the Spurs.

After referee Scott Foster ejected Popovich for arguing and leaving the bench area 4:54 into the second half, Foster walked away from the scorer's table and called a technical on Duncan. That led to a 63-58 lead for the Warriors with 5:59 left in the third quarter.

The Spurs regained the lead when Michael Finley's free throw made it 67-66 with 3:01 left in the third.

"Coach Popovich is a very intelligent coach," said Warriors guard Derek Fisher, who scored 27 points. "He must have felt that his team needed to get some emotion while playing the game."

Udrih helped San Antonio pull away early in the fourth quarter. He gave the Spurs a 79-72 lead with a spinning layup past Monta Ellis on a fast-break pass from Manu Ginobili.

After Mike Dunleavy's layup, Udrih got open again and hit a 3-pointer to give San Antonio an 82-74 lead with 9:32 remaining.

Udrih hit five of eight shots in 14 minutes for the Spurs, whose reserves outscored Golden State's substitutes 37-16. Since veteran guard Nick Van Exel has been on the Spurs' sideline for the past nine games with an injured left elbow, Udrih has averaged 10.4 points per game on 39-of-70 shooting.

The Spurs also counted on their defense to pull away from Golden State. The Warriors were limited to eight assists on 36 baskets while the Spurs had 22 assists on just three more baskets.

Warriors coach Mike Montgomery said the inside presence of Duncan and Nazr Mohammed clogged Golden State's offense. The Warriors have lost 15 of 17 road games.

"I felt like we had a hard time trying to get to the basket," Montgomery said. "When you have two 7-footers in the paint it's hard to get layups."

The Spurs have won five straight over Golden State. The Spurs have won 17 straight at home over the Warriors dating to Feb. 14, 1997.

Fisher, playing in place of the injured Baron Davis at point guard for the third straight game, was limited to one assist.

Fisher had games of nine and 13 assists in the two previous games in place of Davis, who is on the sideline with a sprained right ankle.

Game notes
Ginobili, who missed the Spurs' 92-77 victory at Houston on Saturday because of a strained left calf muscle, started Tuesday and scored 10 points on 3-of-8 shooting. ... The Spurs start a five-game trip Wednesday in Denver and don't return home until April 1.