SAN ANTONIO, March 18 (Ticker) -- Tim Duncan is one superstar who doesn't mind coming off the bench.

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Duncan played for just the second time in 11 games and had 22 points and 10 rebounds off the bench to help the San Antonio Spurs to a 106-86 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves in a matchup of the top two teams in the NBA's best division.

Just three days after All-Star guard Allen Iverson refused to come off the bench for the Philadelphia 76ers, Duncan made his return to the Spurs as a reserve. He missed the previous two games and nine of the last 10 due to left knee problems.

Iverson said he didn't know of any All-Star and Olympian that would come off the bench, but Duncan - a perennial All-Star and two-time MVP - did not have a problem with the idea.

"It's two totally different situations," Duncan said. "I tried to play a week ago and obviously wasn't ready. It was about getting in live action and seeing how (the knee) reacts. I might want to (come off the bench) more often. My knee feels great right now."

Duncan entered with 6:15 left in the first quarter and played 27 minutes. He made 6-of-15 shots from the floor and 10-of-15 free throws.

"It seemed he got stronger as he went along," Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. "We don't go anywhere without Tim Duncan. It worked out tonight."

San Antonio took control in the third quarter, using a 26-13 run to open a 15-point cushion. Hedo Turkoglu scored eight of his 13 points and Duncan had six during the spurt, which gave the Spurs a 71-56 edge with 39 seconds left.

"They got things going and we lost our composure a little bit," Minnesota coach Flip Saunders said. "Once that happened, we couldn't get a flow going offensively or defensively."

The Spurs won for the second time in three meetings with the Timberwolves, pulling within 1 1/2 games of first-place Minnesota in the Midwest Division. They finish the season series Tuesday at the Target Center.

"It was a wonderful win against a good basketball team," Popovich said. "They're the best in our division. I couldn't be happier."

Tony Parker scored 16 points and Manu Ginobili added 15 for San Antonio, which had five players in double figures.

Kevin Garnett collected 28 points and 12 rebounds and Sam Cassell had 21 points as Minnesota lost for the sixth time in nine games.

"They were more aggressive than us tonight," Cassell said. "But to lose to the Spurs by 20, for this team, that's ridiculous. We have to get back to our brand of basketball, and that means we have to control the tempo."