Spurs rest Duncan, beat sliding Bobcats (AP)

SAN ANTONIO (AP)—Steve Novak(notes) scored 19 points while Tim Duncan(notes) took his
first game off all season, and the San Antonio Spurs beat the Charlotte Bobcats
109-98 on Saturday night.

The Spurs let the 34-year-old Duncan rest a night after they really needed
him in a win over Dallas. They managed fine without him against the sliding
Bobcats, who have dropped three in a row and nine of their last 11.

Gerald Henderson(notes) led Charlotte with 19 points. Stephen Jackson(notes), the Bobcats’
leading scorer, didn’t play because of a strained hamstring.

Only Duncan had started the first 68 games for San Antonio, having stayed
healthy unlike recent years. The Spurs listed Duncan on their pregame injury
report as “trop vieux”—French for “too old.”