SAN ANTONIO (Ticker) -- Tim Duncan and Tony Parker made triumphant returns to the starting lineup Monday, just in time to honor their former teammate.
Duncan had 16 points, 10 rebounds and four blocks in his first game in a week and Parker had nine points in his season debut as the San Antonio Spurs posted an 87-78 victory over the Utah Jazz.
The returns came on an already emotional night as former Spurs center David Robinson had his No. 50 retired.
"David Robinson is just a great character guy, a great player," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "You have to be proud of what he has done for his team and this whole franchise. This league needs more guys like David Robinson."
"It was great to get a win on his night," Duncan added.
Duncan sprained his left ankle on November 3 and missed three games. Parker missed the season's first seven games after suffering a left ankle sprain during the preseason.
"It (ankle) felt good," Duncan said. "It's feeling better and better. Just taking it day to day. Yesterday, I practiced and it felt good. (Spurs coach Gregg Popovich) was still wavering. It still felt good when I got here today and I feel fine right now."
"Tim and Tony did great," Popovich said. "Tim did better than Tony (conditioning wise), as Tony hasn't played for a long time. The only way for him to get back in shape is playing."
Manu Ginobili, who played brilliantly in Duncan's absence, led San Antonio with 18 points. Hedo Turkoglu added 14 points off the bench and Bruce Bowen had 12 for the Spurs, who have won 13 straight games against Utah.
Matt Harpring, who missed the previous game to attend a funeral, led Utah with 11 points. Carlos Arroyo, Andrei Kirilenko and Jarron Collins had 10 apiece.
The Spurs lead 71-53 with 9:04 left but the Jazz went on a 23-10 run to pull within 81-76 with 24 seconds remaining. But San Antonio sealed the contest by making 6-of-8 free throws down the stretch.
"They got inside on us," Sloan said. "They scored some easy baskets on us. I understand how great this Spurs team is. But the question is, are you going to compete or are you just happy being in the NBA?"
Robinson played all 14 of his seasons with the Spurs before retiring after the 2002-03 campaign. He won two championships, the Most Valuable Player Award in 1995 and finished with career averages of 21.1 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.99 blocks.
San Antonio took a 15-12 lead in the first quarter but the Jazz closed the period with a 12-2 run to build a seven-point lead.
The Spurs opened the second with a 14-0 run to take a 31-24 lead with 5:18 left. Arroyo's jumper with 4:54 ended the Jazz's drought and but Ginobili's acrobatic layup with just under a minute left gave San Antonio a 41-33 lead at halftime.
"In the second we played well together and really stayed with them," Harpring said. "We just have to play well the whole game and not just in stretches on the road."
San Antonio opened the second half with a solid defensive effort. Bowen chased down an errant pass in the frontcourt and made a three-point play to give the Spurs a 50-37 lead with 9:35 left in the quarter.
San Antonio led by as many as 18 in the quarter and held a 65-51 lead after 36 minutes.
The Spurs shot 44 percent (31-of-70) from the field but their poor free throw shooting nearly cost them the game. San Antonio missed 10 of its first 25 free throws before finishing 21-of-33.
Utah committed 22 turnovers in the game and shot 41 percent (29-of-71) from the field to remain winless on the road. San Antonio was a bit more efficient, with 17 turnovers and 15 steals.
"We have to execute the same on the road as we do at home," Collins said. "We need a road win right now but everybody in this locker room feels like if we keep fighting hard and playing hard we will get it."
San Antonio has swept the past three season series and the Jazz have lost all four of their trips to the SBC Center. Utah has not beaten the Spurs on the road since February 28, 1999.
