Spurs 106, Hornets 102: Tiago Splitter scored a season-high 25 points, Tony Parker added 24 points and 13 assists and host San Antonio used a dominant defensive effort in the second half to subdue New Orleans.

The Spurs made life miserable for the Hornets, limiting them to 38 second-half points en route to their sixth consecutive victory despite the absences of coach Gregg Popovich (illness) and forward Tim Duncan (knee). Stephen Jackson added 15 points while Danny Green chipped in with 12.

Eric Gordon's 17 points paced the Hornets, who lost for the third time in the past 10 games. Ryan Anderson had 16 points in a reserve role while Greivis Vasquez added 15 points and 11 assists.

After a first-half shootout that saw the Hornets go into the break ahead 64-60, both teams struggled in the third quarter. New Orleans went up by as many as five points on Austin Rivers' jumper with 3:06 remaining but the Spurs rebounded, getting layups from Splitter and Nando de Colo to enter the fourth trailing 79-78.

Gary Neal's 3-pointer from the right sideline with 8:41 remaining extended the Spurs' lead to four, and Parker followed with six straight points after the Hornets had jumped back in front. Parker added a 10-foot jumper and a driving layup on back-to-back possessions later in the period and the Spurs fended off a late charge.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Vasquez had 10 assists in the first half. ... The Spurs, who came into the game averaging a league-best 25.2 assists per game, finished with 29 against New Orleans. ... Hornets rookie F Anthony Davis, who was a question mark prior to the game with an ankle injury, finished with nine points and seven rebounds in 31 minutes.