LAS VEGAS - The San Antonio Spurs put their third-quarter woes behind them just in time to make the Western Conference semifinals a competitive series.

Tony Parker had 31 points and 11 assists and Manu Ginobili also scored 31 to help the Spurs post a 110-99 victory over the New Orleans Hornets in Thursday’s Game 3.

Tim Duncan recorded 16 points and 13 rebounds and Bruce Bowen added 12 markers to help the defending champion Spurs earn their first win in this best-of-seven series. San Antonio could even the conference semifinals at 2-2 with a win Sunday at home in Game 4.

The Spurs, outscored over the previous two third quarters by a combined 65-35 score, held a 29-22 edge in Game 3 to help create an 83-78 advantage heading into the fourth.

Then Ginobili took over.

The reigning Sixth Man of the Year scored nine points, including a four-point play in the first five minutes of the quarter. Bowen's 3-pointer from the corner gave the Spurs a 101-88 edge with 5:55 left.

The Hornets had little trouble winning the first two games of this series at home. However, they now have their work cut out for them against the defending champions.

It appeared early that the Hornets picked up where they left off in the previous two meetings, jumping out to an 8-0 advantage. Behind Paul's 14-point outburst in the first, the Hornets held a 23-21 lead after the opening quarter. Parker paced the Spurs with 10 points in the first.

Bowen and Michael Finley hit back-to-back 3-pointers from the corner to give San Antonio a 41-37 lead midway through the second. New Orleans responded with eight straight points before Ginobili's 3-pointer tied the game at 45-45 with 2:11 left in the half.

Ginobili poured in 16 points in the first half, including a last-second jumper that cut the Spurs' deficit to 56-54 at intermission.

Hornets forward David West thinks the Spurs controlled the tempo in the second half.

"They slowed the game down," said West, who had 23 points and 12 rebounds. "We just can't let them dictate how we're going to play. In the first two games, we didn't do that."

The Spurs also were able to defend the perimeter more effectively than in previous games and even made 11-of-25 of their own three-point attempts.

Paul, who celebrated his 23rd birthday on Tuesday, missed his fourth 30-point, 10-rebound game in the playoffs by scoring 35 points and grabbing nine boards. ... Though the Hornets out-rebounded the Spurs by an average of six boards per game in the first two meetings, they lost the edge on Thursday, 43-41.

The Spurs scored 29 points in the third quarter on Thursday, after they combined to score 35 points in the third quarters of the previous two games.

San Antonio has not lost a home game this postseason. The Spurs are now 5-3 all-time in Game 3 when trailing 0-2 in a series. However, San Antonio has never come back to win a series after losing the first two games.

May 11, 2008