RECAP | BOX SCORE | GAME FLOW

HOUSTON (AP) _ Tim Duncan scored 15 of his 19 points in the second half as the San Antonio Spurs beat the Houston Rockets 98-80 Tuesday night.

Houston trailed by 13 points midway in the second quarter, but closed to 48-41 at halftime and trailed by only one point late in the third quarter.

San Antonio never lost the lead, though, and took a 65-60 advantage into the fourth quarter. Houston pulled within 69-66 with 8:23 left, but was outscored 29-14 the rest of the way.

Samaki Walker had 15 points and Avery Johnson added 14 for the Spurs.

Rookie Steve Francis led the Rockets with 20 points and Hakeem Olajuwon added 19.

Former Rockets scored 19 of San Antonio's 25 points in the first quarter, including 10 by Chucky Brown. Houston fell behind 44-31 late in the second quarter but an 8-0 run helped the Rockets pulled within seven points at halftime.