Parker powers Antonio to victory

Title favourites Miami go down to Orlando

 San Antonio’s Tony Parker scored 37 points to continue his hot scoring stretch and lead the Spurs to a 100-90 road win over the Atlantic Division-leading Philadelphia 76ers on Wednesday for their sixth successive victory.

Two games after scoring a season-high 42 points against Oklahoma City, Parker was again on top form to help the Spurs win the second match of a nine-game road trip.

Parker carved up Philadelphia's defense and added eight assists and combinedwell with reserve Tiago Splitter, who had 15 points.

"I love playing the pick-and-roll with Tiago," Parker told reporters. "He is always in perfect position."

San Antonio had the upper hand for most of the game, grabbing a three-point edge at halftime before streaking away in the third quarter where Parker netted 12 points and padding their lead to as much as 12 before putting Philadelphia away.

Gary Neal recorded 18 points off the bench while Tim Duncan had 16 and 11 rebounds for the Spurs (18-9), who lead the Southwest Division.

The 76ers (18-8) got a team-high 22 from Lou Williams but had their momentum slowed in losing for just the second time in eight games.

Philadelphia made a couple late runs, pulling within six at 91-85 in the final three minutes, but Parker added a jumper and an assist to stifle the rally.

"When he's attacking the basket, he's incredibly tough to stop," said 76ers forward Elton Brand, who had 11 points and 13 rebounds in his return to the court following a two-game absence with a thumb injury.

Meanwhile, the 2013 All-Star Game will be held in Houston from Feb 15 to 17, the NBA officially announced.

“Houston is a spectacular sports city, and for one week it will be the basketball capital of the world,” said NBA commissioner David Stern Wednesday in Toyota Center -- Houston Rockets home court.

“NBA All-Star is a magnificent celebration of our game, and I want to thank the city and the Rockets for welcoming us once again,” he added.

It will be the third time for the fourth largest US city to host All-Star Game for the NBA. Houston first became host for NBA All Star Game in 1989 and then again in 2006.

“I am thrilled the Rockets and the City of Houston have once again brought NBA All-Star to Toyota Center,” said Houston Rockets owner Leslie Alexander. “The 2006 All-Star Game in Houston was a tremendous success and we plan to set the bar even higher in 2013,” he explained.

Results: Cleveland: 99 bt LA Clippers: 92; Orlando: 102 bt Miami: 89; San Antonio: 100 bt Philadelphia: 90; Milwaukee: 105 bt Toronto: 99; NY Knicks: 107 bt Washington: 93; Atlanta: 97 bt Indiana: 87; Detroit: 99 bt New Jersey: 92; Chicago: 90 bt New Orleans: 67; Memphis: 85 bt Minnesota: 80.