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HOUSTON (AP) -- Houston Rockets rookie Kenny Thomas got the first start of his brief career Sunday night and his assignment was simple: stop Tim Duncan.

Thomas did that for three quarters, but then Duncan took control.

	Tim Duncan, who scored 17 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and overtime, shoots over Houston's Carlos Rogers.

Duncan scored 17 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter and overtime to lead the San Antonio Spurs to a 113-111 victory over the Rockets on Sunday night.

"Every team's superstar always does that down the stretch," San Antonio coach Gregg Popovich said. "That's why they're superstars."

Duncan, who had just eight points and seven rebounds through three quarters, fueled an 11-2 run in the fourth for the Spurs.

Duncan scored 13 and had four rebounds in the fourth, and added four points and a key steal in overtime to lead the Spurs to their eighth straight victory against the Rockets.

"They kept double-teaming me and I was in a little bit of foul trouble the first three quarters," Duncan said. "But in the fourth quarter, I got a little more space and I was able to make some shots. I think they were playing me a little more open then."

Rockets coach Rudy Tomjanovich was impressed by Duncan's performance.

"Duncan is amazing," Tomjanovich said. "He made a couple of shots when we thought we had him in a bad position."

Duncan, who finished with 11 rebounds for his 44th double-double of the season, praised Thomas.

"Kenny Thomas actually played me great tonight," he said. "He was very tough on me. I saw him play in college and I knew he could get up and down the court. He's going to be a great one for them."

Thomas didn't feel great after the game.

"They are the champs and they made the big plays," said Thomas, who had 16 points and nine rebounds in a career-high 43 minutes. "Tim is such a great player. What he really likes to do is that spin move and the shot off the backboard.

"I tried to get a hand in his face, but it's a tough shot to defend. Sometimes there is little you can do (against him)."

Mario Elie had 19 points, and Avery Johnson 16 points and 13 assists for San Antonio, which trailed by as many as 13 in the second and third quarters.

Hakeem Olajuwon made his first start since undergoing hernia surgery on Nov. 27 and scored 21 points and had nine rebounds as the Rockets' five-game home winning streak was stopped. Cuttino Mobley added 20 points, and Steve Francis 19 points and 12 assists for Houston.

In the overtime, Duncan made his first shot, then converted two free throws with 35 seconds left to give San Antonio a 109-107 lead. He then made a key steal with 22 seconds to play. Terry Porter and Elie each hit a pair of free throws in the final 20 seconds to seal the victory.

San Antonio went ahead by 10 in the first quarter behind the shooting of Elie and David Robinson.

The Spurs hit five 3-pointers, including three by Elie, in the first quarter for a 29-25 lead.

The Rockets made four 3-pointers in the second to take the lead and went on an 18-2 run for a 43-31 lead with 7:20 to play in the half.

The Rockets ended the half hitting 6-of-10 3-pointers to take a 56-47 lead at the half.

Game notes
Olajuwon tied Robert Parish for fifth place in number of games played with one franchise (1,105). ... The Rockets activated Carlos Rogers, out since Jan. 20 with hand surgery, from the injured list and put Kelvin Cato on it with a sprained left ankle ... San Antonio is 18-1 in games when it scores 100 or more points this season ... The Spurs are 3-0 in overtime this season.