SAN ANTONIO - While the San Antonio Spurs drenched their newest golden championship trophy in champagne, sweat and tears, the MVP award was safe and dry.

Tim Duncan stashed that prize atop a tall refrigerator in the back corner of the Spurs' locker room. He wanted both hands free to party - a bottle in one, a video camera in the other.

Besides, he knows which trophy really matters.

The Spurs won their third NBA title in seven seasons Thursday night, outlasting the Detroit Pistons 81-74 in Game 7. The NBA Finals swelled in intensity and thrills through two weeks to the second half of the clincher, when Duncan finally put on a performance worthy of a player with his resume, skills and hardware collection.

Duncan had 25 points and 11 rebounds, scoring 17 points after halftime while urgently demanding the ball. If this defense-dominated series was a referendum on Duncan's career, as many suggested, he passed by a paper-thin margin after seven games of dogged campaigning - and he couldn't do it alone.

"I hate to be repetitive, but (it's) perseverance," Duncan said. "We just stuck with it. We just kept on pushing. We just kept on fighting. We believed in what we were doing, and we believed that if we did it the right way, we could get it done."

The last two NBA champions stretched the finals to a seventh game for the first time since 1994. Given the chance, Detroit and San Antonio probably would have played seven more games at this same level of parity and excitement.

Little separated them after the blowouts of the first four games: just Robert Horry's heroics in Game 5, the Pistons' impressive poise in Game 6 and, finally, Duncan's indomitable will at the close of perhaps the worst playoff series of his career.

Duncan is the only player who was on all three of coach Gregg Popovich's championship teams in San Antonio - and with three MVP awards in the finals, he joined Michael Jordan, Magic Johnson and Shaquille O'Neal in an exclusive fraternity.

"It's definitely an honor," Duncan said, "but this team has so many MVPs."

Duncan barely won the voting over Manu Ginobili, who added a second ring to his Olympic gold medal. The freewheeling Argentine forward cemented his international stardom in this series and its final game, scoring 11 of his 23 points in the fourth quarter - including six in the final minute.

Duncan and Ginobili carried the Spurs against Detroit's inflexible defense, scoring 33 of San Antonio's 43 points after halftime. The Spurs never trailed in a final quarter spent clinging to the smallest advantages.

"It's tough, and it always is, but somebody has to lose," said Chauncey Billups, last season's finals MVP. "Unfortunately, it was us this time, but I'm proud of the heart we showed."

During the celebration, Tony Parker wore a French flag around his shoulders and Ginobili cavorted in shorts from the Argentine national team. Commissioner David Stern's urgent move to globalize his league should benefit immeasurably from the Spurs' successes - and their smart, defense-oriented game, shared with Detroit, continues to thrive against all other innovations.

Richard Hamilton scored 15 points for the Pistons, who were a few shots and a few minutes shy of their second straight title. Seven trying months, starting with the infamous Palace brawl and ending with a come-from-behind win in the conference finals, ended just short of a second title.

Still, the Pistons got into Duncan's head early and often in this series - something that might be useful if the teams get together again next summer. When they forced Duncan to miss eight straight shots in Game 7, they seemed capable of winning another surprising title.

"I'm just as proud of my team as I was (on) June 16th last year," said Larry Brown, referring to the date of last season's title-clinching win over the Lakers. The Detroit coach is headed for a hospital visit after next week's draft to determine whether he's healthy enough to continue coaching.

"And I'm proud of their team. ... There's a perfect example of playing the right way. Emotionally, you want to win badly, but I also recognize the fact that another team deserved it."

The Spurs got a break when Billups, the Pistons' unflappable guard, got two early fouls. He sat out nearly eight minutes and never found his rhythm, finishing with just 13 points and eight assists.

The teams traded small leads throughout the first three quarters, both playing stifling defense and making few memorable shots. Detroit had a nine-point lead in the third quarter, but the Spurs tied it entering the fourth - and Duncan and Ginobili took over from there.

"(Duncan) put his team on his shoulders and carried it to a championship," said Ben Wallace, who had 12 points and 11 rebounds. "You know, that's what great players do."

During the champagne celebration, Duncan trained his camera on Horry, who scored 15 points while wrapping up his sixth title. He has won rings with the best big men of his era: O'Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon and Duncan.

"Tim came out, and `Oh, he's ready tonight, we're going to ride him,'" Horry said. "He got the job done down the stretch. He did his thing, came out tonight and shed a lot of doubts."