San Antonio 110, Seattle 89

SAN ANTONIO, April 20 (UPI) -- Tim Duncan had a triple-double and the San Antonio Spurs outshot the NBA's best-shooting team Saturday as they cruised to a 110-89 victory over the Seattle SuperSonics in Game 1 of their Western Conference first-round series.

A leading candidate for Most Valuable Player, Duncan had 21 points, 10 rebounds, 11 assists and five blocks. He more than picked up the slack for center David Robinson, who left with a sore back early in the second quarter and did not return.

"They were coming hard on the double-teams," Duncan said. "We had to make them pay somehow. I kicked it out and guys were knocking down shots. We'll take it how we can get it."

Duncan's all-around brilliance allowed his teammates to play off him. The Spurs had six players in double figures and shot a scorching 59 percent from the field despite an entire fourth quarter of garbage time.

"Tim played phenomenal tonight," Spurs forward Malik Rose said. "Our entire offense goes through him and he really doesn't get the credit that he deserves. Tonight he came out and made things look so easy. He is just such a great player."

"He gets better each year," Spurs Coach Gregg Popovich said. "He feels comfortable and trusts his teammates. He makes everyone better on the court."

After being played to a 52-52 stalemate by the seventh-seeded SuperSonics in the first half, the Spurs dominated the third quarter. They shot 75 percent (15-of-20) and used runs of 8-0 and 21-4 to open a 90-65 lead. Duncan and Tony Parker scored 10 points each in the first period.

A teen-age rookie point guard matched up against perennial All-Star Gary Payton in his first playoff game, Parker scored 21 points -- one shy of his season high -- while hitting nine of 12 shots from the field.

Steve Smith scored 17 points, Malik Rose and Antonio Daniels each added 13 and Danny Ferry 11 for the Spurs, who took advantage of the double-teams on Duncan to make nine of 15 three-pointers. Parker, Smith and Ferry made three apiece.

Duncan's triple-double was the first in the playoffs by a Spur since May 17, 1993, when Robinson had 20 points, 17 rebounds and 11 assists against Portland.

Robinson will undergo an MRI Sunday to determine the extent of his injury. He is questionable for Game 2 of the best-of-five series Monday night in San Antonio.

"David never says if something is killing him, or if he hurts, he says he's fine," Popovich said. "When he came out of the game and gave me that look, that was telling for me. If he's healthy, he'll come back and play because we need him."

Vin Baker scored 22 points and Payton added 19 for the SuperSonics, who shot 48 percent during the season but just five of 17 in the pivotal third quarter.

"We went south. They went north," Seattle guard Brent Barry said. "We went so far south we were eating Chinese food."

"The third quarter turned into a track meet and we had no one to pull us together and stop the bleeding," Sonics coach Nate McMillan said. "It happened so fast. If you don't play every possession, the game can turn that quickly in the playoffs."

A three-pointer by Payton had the Sonics within 58-57 with 8:31 left in the third period before Duncan's basket triggered an 8-0 burst.

"We didn't stick to the game plan and started settling for jump shots," Payton said. "Those long rebounds allowed them to run."

A layup by Payton made it 69-61 with 5:11 to go before the floodgates opened. Parker had two three-pointers and Smith made one before Duncan's hammer dunk on a five-on-one break made it 84-63 with 1:16 remaining.

"We got a couple of turnovers and really started running the ball," Duncan said. "We got the ball up the floor and didn't really let them set their defense."

"The game got turned to light speed in the third quarter," Baker said.