EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) -- Kenyon Martin returned to action. Tim Duncan returned to form.
Martin's return to the lineup was not enough to slow Duncan, who had 31 points and 12 rebounds to lead the San Antonio Spurs to an 85-71 victory over the New Jersey Nets in a rematch of the NBA Finals.
After missing five games with a sprained left ankle, Martin made it back for this meeting with the Spurs, who took out the Nets in six games in the NBA Finals. He was matched up with Duncan, who returned Monday from a three-game absence due to a sprained ankle and collected 16 points and 10 rebounds in a win over Utah.
"Last game, my shot wasn't there," Duncan said. "My shot really isn't back too much right now. I got to the basket a little bit. I got some closer shots. I got to the free-throw line a little bit. I just worked the whole floor, basically."
Duncan flashed his MVP form, making 12-of-19 shots and blocking three shots. As he did last June, he got the better of Martin, who had 14 points and 10 boards but made just 7-of-21 shots.
"I felt fine, but I got a little winded at the end of the second quarter," Martin said. "When I got my second wind, I felt fine."
"He is our emotional leader," Nets coach Byron Scott said. "He is the guy that we rely on out there to come out and give us that energy, and I think he pretty much tried to do that."
Tony Parker scored 17 points and Manu Ginobili added 12 for the Spurs, who took control with a 15-2 run to close the first half and held off a second-half charge by the Nets.
"I'm trying to get back into shape," said Parker, who also returned Monday. "My sprained ankle was worse than Timmy's, so it's taking a long time to heal."
"When we play each other, both teams are pretty aggressive and pretty good defensive clubs, so it ends up being like this," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "We're just happy that we made a few more shots than they did."
Jason Kidd posted his 52nd career triple-double with 14 points, 13 assists and 12 rebounds for New Jersey, which fell to 1-3 at home.
The Spurs did not commit a turnover in the second quarter. Duncan had four points between 3-pointers by Bruce Bowen and Ginobili as San Antonio built a 16-point halftime lead.
"I thought we started out pretty good, but all of a sudden in the second quarter, our energy level went downhill," Scott said.
A floater in the lane by Martin cut the deficit to 67-64 with 8:19 to play, but Ginobili made a twisting, driving three-point play and another layup around a free throw by Alonzo Mourning. Bowen and Parker made dagger 3-pointers down the stretch.
"It was was good way to start this trip," Duncan said. "We are going against three good Eastern Conference teams (Philadelphia and Washington)."
