SAN ANTONIO, March 16 (Ticker) -- The Boston Celtics have been turning some heads with their recent play, but they still have not figured out a way to beat the San Antonio Spurs.

Tim Duncan collected 37 points and 10 rebounds and Danny Ferry hit two crucial 3-pointers in the final two minutes as the Spurs held off the Celtics, 111-104, in a battle of the league's hottest teams.

San Antonio stretched its winning streak to nine games, one shy of its season high set from December 1-21.

"They're a tough team to play against," Duncan said. "They shoot a lot of threes, spread the court with their small guys and have a lot of shooters on the floor."

NBA TV highlights from Celtics-Spurs: 56k | 300k Danny Ferry and the Spurs stretched their winning streak to nine by downing the Celtics. D. Clarke Evans NBAE/Getty Images

Antoine Walker and Paul Pierce each scored 31 points for the Celtics, who had a season-high seven-game winning streak snapped. Boston has dropped 12 straight and 15 of its last 16 against San Antonio.

"To be honest, I thought we played enough to win this game," Walker said. "There was just a couple of shots that could have gone either way. We had our opportunities but it just didn't happen."

San Antonio erased a 79-75 deficit late in the third quarter with a 9-0 run that continued into the fourth period. The Spurs extended their lead to 99-89 on Malik Rose's dunk with 3:42 left.

The Celtics did not go quietly, reeling off eight straight points to close to 99-97 on Pierce's three-point play with 2:31 left.

On the Spurs' next possession, Ferry was left wide open in the left corner and drilled a 3-pointer to give the Spurs a five-point lead. He scored 13 of his season-high 18 points in the final period.

The Celtics pulled within 104-101 on Walker's pull-up jumper with 48 seconds left. Ferry answered with another 3-pointer, making it 107-101 with 30 seconds to play.

Antonio Daniels gave the Celtics a chance by fouling Pierce was he was attempting a 3-pointer. Pierce hit all three free throws with 24 seconds left.

But Boston gambled and lost on the ensuing possession. With the Celtics in a half-court trap, Daniels passed to a wipe-open Rose, who dunked with 21 seconds left to put the contest out of reach.

"We beat one hell of a basketball team," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "For us, it was a wonderful win. We thought we executed the half-court really well. The fourth quarter, I was really pleased with that. The aggressiveness on the defensive end was outstanding."

The Spurs have closed with one game of first place Dallas in the Midwest Division and are just two games behind Sacramento and the Los Angeles Lakers in the battle for the best record in the Western Conference.

The Spurs host the Lakers on Wednesday, then visit Dallas on Thursday to begin a stretch in which they will play five of six games on the road.

"It feels great to get nine in a row," Duncan said. "We've got three much-needed days before the start of this tough stretch. I think we're ready for it. It's the right way to be before the playoffs and hopefully we'll be able to build confidence from it."

Rose scored 14 points off the bench for the Spurs, who shot just under 51 percent (38-of-75) from the field. David Robinson played just 26 minutes and contributed 12 points.

Kenny Anderson chipped in with 14 points and Rodney Rogers added 11 for the Celtics, who pushed the Spurs by making 12-of-31 3-pointers.

"Every loss hurts but we are not down on ourselves," Walker said. "We are a deep and poised team."