Wednesday, June 8, 2011
“It feels really good to get back in the win column,” Anthony said following the upset victory over the Suns. “They (Phoenix) are a real good team, and it took a huge effort tonight to get the win.”
The Syracuse product scored 21 of his 41 points in an explosive first quarter that saw Orlando grab a lead as large as 13. Anthony’s outburst, coupled with Phoenix’s poor shooting in the first quarter (38%) put the visitors in an early hole.
The Suns did fight back into the game, however, as Kevin Durant scored 14 of his team-high 27 points in the second quarter, that saw Phoenix take a one point lead into the locker room at the half on the back of a Nick Young three-pointer.
The Magic came out inspired in the third period, as they opened play on a 10-0 run, keyed by Steve Nash, both as a scorer as well as a distributor, as he finished with 23 points and a team-high 10 assists.
Dirk Nowitzki finished with 27 points, and poured in 15 of them in the third quarter, as Phoenix finished it strong to take a seven point advantage into the fourth.
“We didn’t finish tonight,” a dejected Nowitzki told reporters in the Suns locker room following the team’s first loss of the season. “Give Orlando credit though, they are much better than their record indicates. We started slow, and finished poorly, that doesn’t typically translate into many victories.”
The Magic fought back within three points and then rookie Evan Turner buried a three-pointer to knot things at 92 with 4:34 remaining. Phoenix pulled ahead by two and kept it there for the next few minutes, until Anthony drilled a mid-range jumper from the corner to tie the game at 98 with just 1:11 left in the fourth.
Nowitzki’s jumper put the Suns back up by two at 100-98 with 43 seconds left, but then with a chance to break the tie at 100 a few possessions later he missed with 33 seconds remaining from the same spot.
Andray Blatche converted a putback off of an Anthony miss with 18 seconds left to put the Magic on top 102-100. That’s when Nowitzki struck again in the clutch, scoring in the paint thanks to a great inbounds play and finished well at the rim to tie the game with under six seconds to play.
Blatche, the unlikeliest of heroes for Orlando nailed a jumpshot from the corner as Anthony was doubled with just two seconds to play to put Orlando up for good. Nowitzki had the chance to tie, but missed his contested fallaway jumper from about 18 feet, sending the Suns to their first defeat of 2010.
The Suns (11-1) next travel to Charlotte to take on Chris Bosh, Deron Williams and the Bobcats (6-5) on Saturday night. Orlando (3-9) will be in Indianapolis on Saturday as they battle Devin Harris, Jason Terry and the Pacers (4-6).
| Nov 18, 2010 - PHX at ORL | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (11-1) | 22 | 29 | 27 | 24 | 102 |
| Orlando Magic (3-9) | 30 | 20 | 21 | 33 | 104 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Kirk Hinrich | 27 | 4-8 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 10 |
| Marcus Thornton | 30 | 6-11 | 2-2 | 2-2 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 16 |
| Kevin Durant | 34 | 13-24 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 27 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 28 | 12-24 | 2-4 | 1-1 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 27 |
| Tyson Chandler | 29 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 11 | 4-8 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Barndon Bass | 13 | 3-7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Omer Asik | 12 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson | 13 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| James Jones | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Matt Bonner - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 45-88 | 7-13 | 5-5 | 42 | 28 | 8 | 7 | 21 | 102 | |
| Orlando Magic | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Steve Nash | 34 | 9-16 | 3-8 | 2-2 | 6 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 23 |
| Evan Turner | 30 | 6-14 | 1-4 | 1-1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| Carmelo Anthony | 32 | 19-36 | 1-3 | 2-2 | 10 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 41 |
| Andray Blatche | 30 | 5-11 | 0-1 | 1-1 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 11 |
| Jermaine O'Neal | 33 | 2-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Travis Outlaw | 9 | 0-3 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Ed Davis | 9 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Jordan Crawford | 11 | 2-5 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 |
| Josh Powell | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Steve Blake | 7 | 0-4 | 0-3 | 2-2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Eddy Curry | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gary Forbes - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 43-97 | 6-24 | 12-12 | 40 | 24 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 104 | |
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Posted on June 4, 2011 at 06:22 PM.
MIAMI, Fla. – The Phoenix Suns came away with a thrilling 115-111 win in Miami in overtime over the Heat at America Airlines Arena Wednesday night. Dirk Nowitzki posted a double-double, finishing with 24 points and a season-high 18 rebounds, while teammate Kevin Durant led the Suns with 33 points, including shooting 5-6 from behind the arc, and nine rebounds.“We really had to fight for this one,” Durant said in a good-natured locker room Wednesday night. “It’s business as usual for us, but you have to hand it to Miami. Iggy (Andre Iguodala), BD (Baron Davis) and those guys hit some big shots and they wouldn’t go away. We pulled it out, took a little longer than usual, but it was fun out there.”
Iguodala finished with a game-high 42 points, though he did so on just 17-47 shooting (36.7%). He shot much better in the first half, going 8-14 from the field and helped bring Miami out of an early hole (trailed 29-15 after one).
“I am frustrated, we let this one get away from us,” Miami Heat coach Erik Spoelstra told reporters following the tough overtime defeat to Phoenix. “This is going to be difficult to take as a unit, but we have to get over it. They (the Suns) are an excellent team and should be one of the better teams in the league, but we gave them one tonight.”
It wasn’t all roses for the Suns, as starting point guard Mike Conley went down with 4:01 remaining in the second quarter with a lower back strain. Word from team physicians was that it is a lower back strain and he is expected to miss anywhere from 1-2 weeks.
The third quarter was a see-saw battle that saw the Phoenix lead grow to as many as 12 points, and as low as four points at the back end of the quarter.
With 6:22 remaining in the fourth quarter, Baron Davis, who finished with 20 points, nine assists and eight rebounds, knocked down a jump shot from just inside the three-point line at the top of the key to cut the Phoenix lead to 83-82.
The Suns then quickly pushed the lead back to seven, on a mini 6-0 run that saw back-to-back three pointers by Marcus Thornton and Durant. Minutes later after a mini run of their own, Miami’s Al-Forouq Aminu made a layup with 2:15 remaining in the fourth quarter to trim the lead back to one at 95-94.
After a Durant bucket, Davis hit a three-pointer to give Miami the 99-98 lead with just 12.8 seconds remaining. After Nowitzki had his driving layup blocked with six seconds left, and Delonte West grabbed the rebound and was sent to the foul line.
West knocked down just one of two from the line to make it 100-98, but left the door open for the inevitable. Nowitzki and the Suns ran a nice out-of-bounds play to get him free under the basket for an uncontested layup to tie things at 100 with 4.6 seconds in regulation left. Miami then threw the ball away on the ensuing inbounds play, sending the game into overtime, the first such game for both teams.
With 1:48 remaining in the extra frame and the game tied at 106, Thornton untied it with one of his three a triples on the night from the corner nearest the Heat bench. Davis sent the crowd into a frenzy, answering right back with a three of his own to knot it at 109.
Nowitzki’s floater with 49 seconds left in overtime put the Suns up four points for good, 115-111. Iguodala and Davis each missed three pointers on the same possession to cut into the lead and the Suns escaped with their 11th straight win.
Phoenix is back in action tomorrow night against Carmelo Anthony, Steve Nash and the Orlando Magic (2-9) at the Amway Center, while the Heat look to rebound on Friday night against Chris Bosh, Deron Williams and the Charlotte Bobcats (6-5).
| Nov 17, 2010 - PHX at MIA | ||||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | OT | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (11-0) | 29 | 22 | 28 | 21 | 15 | 115 |
| Miami Heat (6-5) | 14 | 32 | 28 | 26 | 11 | 111 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 9 | 3-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 6 |
| Marcus Thornton | 31 | 7-15 | 3-4 | 0-0 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 17 |
| Kevin Durant | 35 | 13-21 | 5-6 | 2-2 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 33 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 33 | 12-22 | 0-3 | 0-2 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 24 |
| Tyson Chandler | 34 | 2-6 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 17 | 4-7 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 27 | 4-10 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 4 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 10 |
| Omer Asik | 8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 9 | 0-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 15 | 4-5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| James Jones | 3 | 1-1 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Daniel Gibson | 5 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| TEAM TOTALS | 51-100 | 11-18 | 2-4 | 65 | 32 | 5 | 5 | 25 | 115 | |
| Miami Heat | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Baron Davis | 36 | 9-25 | 2-9 | 0-0 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 20 |
| Andre Iguodala | 35 | 17-47 | 6-18 | 2-2 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 42 |
| Al-Forouq Aminu | 33 | 4-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Darrell Arthur | 25 | 3-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Emeka Okafor | 39 | 4-10 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 14 | 3 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Delonte West | 17 | 4-9 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| Jermaine Taylor | 10 | 3-5 | 1-1 | 0-2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Marvin Williams | 10 | 2-4 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Larry Sanders | 6 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Manny Harris | 6 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Julian Wright | 4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Timofey Mozgov | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TEAM TOTALS | 48-120 | 10-30 | 5-8 | 51 | 19 | 19 | 3 | 6 | 111 | |
Friday, June 3, 2011
Posted on June 3, 2011 at 08:30 PM.
PHOENIX, Ariz. – The Suns made it 10 straight to start the season, after a thrilling 117-114 win over the visiting Denver Nuggets. Kevin Durant again carried the scoring load with 26 points, and he also posted seven rebounds and five assists. Dirk Nowitzki put in a solid effort, finishing with 24 points, 14 of which came in the first quarter. Phoenix took a 10 point advantage into the break behind a solid effort on the offensive end.
“This was another one of those nights,” Suns head coach Alvin Gentry told reporters following the team’s tenth straight victory. “We tried to do everything we could in the second half to give this game away, specifically the fourth quarter. But, that being said, we were able to prevail and that is all that truly matters. I’m pleased to be where we are right now (10-0).”
The Suns exploded for a 17-0 run that pushed a five point lead all the way back to 22 late in the third quarter and it seemed that the Suns would coast to another victory. That wasn’t the case however, as the Nuggets, without star shooting guard Kevin Martin (out with a torn meniscus in his right knee), would not go away.
They chipped away slowly at the Phoenix lead, and cut it to single digits midway through the fourth on a Spencer Hawes three-pointer from the top of the key at 109-101. A solid offensive effort from Josh Smith (18 points and 12 rebounds) and Russell Westbrook (28 points, 10 assists and 8 rebounds) coupled with poor Phoenix shooting (7-24 in the quarter) brought the Nuggets within striking distance.
Westbrook hit a fallaway jumper with just under two minutes remaining to cut the lead to three and after a defensive stop, Smith made a putback to cut it to one with 1:17 left. One possession later, off of a turnover, Smith’s transition layup gave the Nuggets their first lead of the game at 114-113 since the early-going of the first quarter (8-7).
The Suns responded with a Durant mid-range jumper and Marcus Thornton slam dunk off of a steal with just 37 seconds left to take the lead to three at 117-114, and they held on for the win.
Phoenix travels to South Beach on Wednesday night to take on Andre Iguodala and the Miami Heat (6-4) at American Airlines Arena at 5:30 p.m. MT. Denver hosts Kyle Lowry and the New York Knicks (6-5) tomorrow night.
| Nov 15, 2010 - DEN at PHX | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Denver Nuggets (7-3) | 25 | 26 | 28 | 35 | 114 |
| Phoenix Suns (10-0) | 32 | 31 | 34 | 20 | 117 |
| Denver Nuggets | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Russell Westbrook | 35 | 12-28 | 2-4 | 2-4 | 8 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 5 | 28 |
| J.J. Redick | 17 | 6-10 | 4-4 | 1-1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Hedo Turkoglu | 33 | 9-27 | 1-5 | 0-0 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 19 |
| Josh Smith | 30 | 8-16 | 0-1 | 2-3 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 18 |
| Spencer Hawes | 32 | 2-7 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 7 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 5 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Corey Maggette | 22 | 3-6 | 0-2 | 2-2 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| Jeff Teague | 8 | 3-7 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Tiago Splitter | 11 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Leon Powe | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Andersen | 6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Sherron Collins | 6 | 2-6 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Kelenna Azubuike - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 48-110 | 9-22 | 9-12 | 49 | 22 | 10 | 4 | 11 | 114 | |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 24 | 5-10 | 1-3 | 1-2 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
| Marcus Thornton | 28 | 5-12 | 1-5 | 0-1 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| Kevin Durant | 31 | 12-20 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 7 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 26 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 31 | 11-22 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 24 |
| Tyson Chandler | 29 | 5-9 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 10 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 14 | 5-9 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 17 | 4-5 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Omer Asik | 9 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 2 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 6 | 1-6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Brandon Bass | 12 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 3-3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| James Jones | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 51-98 | 9-19 | 6-11 | 51 | 33 | 11 | 3 | 18 | 117 | |
Thursday, June 2, 2011
Posted on June 2, 2011 at 02:19 PM.
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – The Phoenix Suns showed the Los Angeles Lakers the difference in class between the two sides on opposite ends of the standings as the Suns dominated from the opening tip, embarrassing the Lakers 128-96 at Staples Center Sunday night.Kevin Durant led the Suns in scoring with 25 points on 11-12 shooting, 23 of which came in the first half, which saw the Phoenix lead swell as high as 33 at times. Durant and other key starters barely played in the second half, as the bench erupted for 56 points, including a season-high for reserve power forward Brandon Bass.
“It was great to get out there and play a lot of minutes,” Bass said in an upbeat Suns locker room. He added, “Our second unit got some time to work on things in a game situation, where I think we really shined. LA are struggling right now, and I’m happy we came in and stomped on their neck.”
It was all bad for the Lakers from the start, as they began the night 2-12 from the field and Phoenix raced out to an 18-4 lead. The lone bright spot for the Los Angeles was Monta Ellis, who scored a game-high 41 points on just 18-29 shooting.
“Man, I’m sick of this losing thing,” an agitated Ellis told reporters after the Lakers worst loss of the campaign. “I could care less about my numbers. It’s about time the rest of the guys in this locker room look themselves in the mirror and come out and play like men. This is unacceptable, and as a leader on this team, I’m livid. This needs to stop, and it will be different in Milwaukee (on Tuesday).”
Aside from the efforts of Ellis, point guard Aaron Brooks (who finished with 23 points) and Paul George (posted 20 points), the Lakers got nothing from anyone else. The rest of the team combined to score just 12 points on an anemic 5-26 shooting (19.2%).
A highlight for Suns fans in this otherwise unentertaining game was the season and Phoenix debut for reserve point guard Daniel “Boobie” Gibson, who finished with four points, three boards and three assists in limited action.
The Suns improve to 2-0 against the Lakers this season, and will have a much more difficult test on their hands tomorrow night back at the US Airways Arena against the 7-2 Denver Nuggets. Denver is led by the talented duo of Durant’s former teammate Russell Westbrook and Josh Smith and are without shooting guard Kevin Martin, who suffered a torn meniscus last week. He is expected to miss 6-8 weeks at minimum. Los Angeles (1-9) should have a good chance at its’ second win of the year on Tuesday night in Milwaukee when they take on Stephen Curry, Jeff Green and the struggling Bucks (2-8).
Around the NBA:
Western Conference foe New Orleans Hornets (8-0) and Suns are the only remaining unbeaten teams in NBA.
Dwyane Wade (Oklahoma City Thunder) and LeBron James (Chicago Bulls) Named NBA Players of the Week.
| Nov 14, 2010 - PHX at LAL | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (9-0) | 34 | 30 | 34 | 30 | 128 |
| Los Angeles Lakers (1-9) | 19 | 15 | 29 | 33 | 96 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 14 | 5-9 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Marcus Thornton | 23 | 7-13 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 15 |
| Kevin Durant | 23 | 11-12 | 1-2 | 2-3 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 25 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 21 | 9-15 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| Tyson Chandler | 17 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 16 | 6-9 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 22 | 4-9 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| Omer Asik | 19 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 13 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 24 | 9-12 | 0-0 | 3-3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 21 |
| James Jones | 8 | 3-3 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 7 |
| Daniel Gibson | 5 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| TEAM TOTALS | 58-87 | 6-14 | 6-10 | 41 | 33 | 7 | 10 | 11 | 128 | |
| Los Angeles Lakers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Aaron Brooks | 35 | 9-18 | 2-4 | 3-4 | 3 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 23 |
| Monta Ellis | 30 | 18-29 | 1-1 | 4-6 | 8 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 41 |
| Paul George | 27 | 7-15 | 3-7 | 3-4 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 20 |
| Glen Davis | 33 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Zaza Pachulia | 6 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Troy Murphy | 24 | 2-10 | 1-7 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 5 |
| Jared Dudley | 17 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Keyon Dooling | 6 | 0-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Harris | 5 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Willie Green | 11 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Daniel Orton | 12 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Matt Janning | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 39-88 | 7-22 | 11-16 | 31 | 21 | 10 | 0 | 11 | 96 | |
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
It seemed as though it was going to be another comfortable win for Phoenix, as Kevin Durant led the charge with 22 of his 33 points in the first half and the Suns led by as many as 22 in the second quarter.
“My shot was falling tonight, simple and plain,” Durant told reporters following the close win. “It just seemed like the basket was ten times as big. That being said, we need to get better defensively as a unit, that second half was ridiculous, no excuse for letting them back in the game like we did.”
Phoenix shot an astounding 64.7% from the field, including 70% in the first quarter. Another offensive catalyst for Phoenix was point guard Mike Conley, who posted yet another double-double, notching another new career-high in assists with 18 and 17 points.
The second half was another story, as Sacramento outscored Phoenix 77-58 and had big production from Vince Carter (a team-high 32 points), Louis Williams (28 points), and Tim Duncan (19 points and five steals).
“We nearly had a fantastic comeback,” Sacramento Kings head coach Paul Westphal said following the disappointing loss Friday night. “But, all that happened tonight was that we lost. It doesn’t matter that we were close, all that matters is that it goes an an ‘L’ in the win-loss column. We lost tonight because of our first half. You can’t fall into that big of a hole and expect to win. Great second half effort, but on to the next one now.”
The Kings stormed back, and cut the Suns lead to just three points with 40.8 seconds remaining after a Shawn Marion dunk over Durant. It was a two-point game with 5.6 seconds left and after another of the Phoenix 18 turnovers, Sacramento had an opportunity to tie or win. Duncan was forced to shoot a deep three pointer from the top of the key, reminiscent of the shot he hit in the 2007 playoffs against the Suns, but this time it came up woefully short as time expired.
The Suns (8-0) travel to Staples Center Sunday at 5:30 p.m. MT for a rematch with Monta Ellis, Aaron Brooks and the struggling Lakers (1-8), whom they defeated 111-109 to open their home slate back on Oct. 29. Durant and Marcus Thornton led the way with 31 and 27 points respectively. The Kings, who fell to 5-3 on the season host Jason Kidd, Joakim Noah, Lamar Odom and the Detroit Pistons (5-4) tomorrow night.
| Nov 12, 2010 - SAC at PHX | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Sacramento Kings (5-3) | 23 | 19 | 38 | 39 | 119 |
| Pheonix Suns (8-0) | 30 | 33 | 31 | 27 | 121 |
| Sacramento Kings | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Louis Williams | 23 | 10-18 | 2-6 | 6-7 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 28 |
| Vince Carter | 33 | 12-28 | 2-7 | 6-6 | 5 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 32 |
| Shawn Marion | 31 | 6-9 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Tim Duncan | 33 | 9-11 | 0-1 | 1-1 | 6 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 19 |
| DeMarcus Cousins | 30 | 4-9 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 9 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Ramon Sessions | 18 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 6-6 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Ronnie Brewer | 10 | 0-5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Boris Diaw | 13 | 1-2 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Jeff Pendergraph | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Reggie Williams | 6 | 2-4 | 0-1 | 1-1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Antoine Wright | 3 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| J.J. Barea - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 47-93 | 5-16 | 20-23 | 33 | 18 | 14 | 2 | 9 | 119 | |
| Pheonix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 24 | 8-10 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 3 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 17 |
| Marcus Thornton | 27 | 8-18 | 1-4 | 0-2 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 17 |
| Kevin Durant | 31 | 15-18 | 2-2 | 1-1 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 33 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 31 | 11-20 | 1-3 | 3-3 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 26 |
| Tyson Chandler | 31 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 11 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 14 | 2-3 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 17 | 1-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| Omer Asik | 6 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 14 | 6-7 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| James Jones | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 55-85 | 5-11 | 6-8 | 38 | 33 | 8 | 1 | 18 | 121 | |
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Bryant posted 40 points, but it took him 38 shots to do so, as he hit the 40 point plateau for the second time in a week against the Suns, but the Grizzlies fell in both matchups and have sputtered out of the gate to a 2-6 record.
Dirk Nowitzki led the way for Phoenix with 26 points, but the key for the Suns was their bench, who outscored Memphis’ bench 32-12. Nick Young outscored the Memphis reserves by himself, as he put up 13 points, a season-high. Kirk Hinrich added 12 points and four assists.
“I took advantage of my opportunities tonight,” Young, a USC product told reporters with a smile on his face. “It’s easy to score when you get open looks, so credit has to go to my teammates.”
Bryant opened the first quarter with 10 points on 4-7 shooting, but he went on to shoot just 13-31 the rest of the way. Trevor Ariza struggled mightily, shooting just 5-15 with 12 points.
The key to the game was a 14-2 run by the Suns midway through the second quarter, led by Nowitzki who posted 15 points in the first half. Phoenix stretched their lead to as many as 17 in the second quarter, and never looked back.
“We came out hard tonight with good intensity,” Suns head coach Alvin Gentry stated at the postgame news conference. “When we have the right mentality going into a game and execute like that, we are a happy coaching staff.”
The Suns take their league-best mark of 7-0 back to Phoenix for a matchup with Tim Duncan, Vince Carter and the Sacramento Kings on Friday night at 7 p.m. MT at US Airways Arena. Memphis (2-6) host Andrew Bynum, Caron Butler and the Dallas Mavericks on Thursday night at the FedEx Forum.
| Nov 9, 2010 - PHX at MEM | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (7-0) | 28 | 30 | 25 | 30 | 113 |
| Memphis Grizzlies (2-6) | 24 | 19 | 22 | 25 | 90 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 22 | 5-10 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 2 | 13 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 10 |
| Marcus Thornton | 27 | 7-12 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 15 |
| Kevin Durant | 28 | 12-23 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 24 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 30 | 12-17 | 0-1 | 2-3 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 26 |
| Tyson Chandler | 26 | 3-3 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 16 | 6-10 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 20 | 5-6 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| Omer Asik | 15 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3-4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 13 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| James Jones | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 52-84 | 2-10 | 7-12 | 39 | 30 | 15 | 7 | 20 | 113 | |
| Memphis Grizzlies | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Tony Parker | 32 | 4-8 | 0-0 | 6-6 | 3 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 14 |
| Kobe Bryant | 33 | 17-38 | 5-18 | 1-1 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 40 |
| Trevor Ariza | 33 | 5-15 | 0-3 | 2-2 | 4 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| David Lee | 32 | 5-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 8 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 10 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 32 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Sasha Vujacic | 6 | 0-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Al Harrington | 15 | 1-6 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Jarrett Jack | 11 | 3-6 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| Nikola Pekovic | 6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Quincy Pondexter | 5 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Samardo Samuels - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Elliot Williams - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 37-89 | 5-25 | 11-11 | 32 | 23 | 18 | 4 | 17 | 90 | |
Posted on May 31, 2011 at 03:27 PM.
ATLANTA, Ga. – The Phoenix Suns continued their hot start to the NBA season with a 107-96 win at Phillips Arena in Atlanta against the Hawks. Kevin Durant carried the scoring load again with 32 points, and Mike Conley posted his fifth double-double of the year with 12 points and a new career-high, 17 assists.“I’m just happy to get the W tonight,” Conley told reporters Sunday night in Atlanta. “My job is to continue to create for my teammates, and I’ll get my own opportunities as they come. KD (Durant), Marcus (Thornton) and Dirk (Nowitzki) were clutch tonight and hit big shots.”
Rudy Gay led the way for Atlanta, as he scored 29 points, 16 of which came in the first quarter, yet it wasn’t enough. Gay shot 12-17 from the floor including 2-3 from beyond the arc, though he struggled from the line, shooting just 3-7.
Atlanta was able to keep things close through the majority of the first half, trailing by just three at the half. Phoenix came out firing on all cylinders in the third quarter, distancing themselves from the Hawks thanks to two separate 12-2 runs. Durant scored 16 points in the third period on 7-9 shooting from the field.
“Mike (Conley) and Marcus (Thornton) were able to get me the ball in good spots,” Durant stated at the podium with his trademark backpack. “I had some easy finishes near the rim and that helped get me going early. When we are rolling like we were in the second half, we are going to be hard to stop.”
Though the lead swelled to as many as 18 in the fourth quarter, Atlanta would not go out without a fight. Gay and Carlos Boozer (21 points) pulled the Hawks close with a big fourth quarter. Boozer made a lay-in while drawing a foul and his free throw cut the Suns lead to 97-91 with 1:51 remaining.
Phoenix pulled away yet again, as Conley’s 17th assist on the night, perhaps his best, set up Durant for a thunderous alley-oop finish to put an exclamation mark on the game. That pushed the lead to 10, and Phoenix held on for the 107-96 win.
The Hawks (3-4), travel to Orlando to take on Carmelo Anthony, Steve Nash and the Magic at the Amway Arena tomorrow night, while the Suns (6-0) have a rematch with the Memphis Grizzlies at the FedEx Forum tomorrow night at 7 p.m. CT. Phoenix knocked off the Grizzlies last week 103-95 in Valley of the Sun despite Kobe Bryant’s exceptional night, where he put up 45 points.
Notable Statistics: PHX: K. Durant: 32 pts, 8 rebs; M. Conley: 12 pts, 17 ast, 4 stl; D. Nowitzki: 25 pts, 7 rebs; M. Thornton: 19 pts; N. Young: 8 pts.
ATL: R. Gay: 29 pts, 5 rebs; C. Boozer: 21 pts, 6 rebs; J. Salmons: 20 pts, 9 ast; D. Augustin: 4 pts (2-10 fgs).
Around the NBA
Kevin Martin of the Denver Nuggets is out 6-8 weeks with a torn meniscus
Derrick Rose (Portland Trailblazers) and LeBron James (Chicago Bulls) named NBA Players of the Week
| Nov 8, 2010 - PHX at ATL | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (6-0) | 26 | 27 | 29 | 25 | 107 |
| Atlanta Hawks (3-4) | 25 | 25 | 20 | 26 | 96 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 26 | 5-7 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 4 | 17 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 12 |
| Marcus Thornton | 30 | 9-15 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 19 |
| Kevin Durant | 32 | 15-21 | 1-2 | 1-1 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 32 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 31 | 11-20 | 0-1 | 3-3 | 7 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 25 |
| Tyson Chandler | 27 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 13 | 3-6 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 15 | 3-8 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 |
| Omer Asik | 11 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 12 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| James Jones | 4 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 48-82 | 6-14 | 5-6 | 34 | 32 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 107 | |
| Atlanta Hawks | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| D.J. Augustin | 26 | 2-10 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 7 | 4 |
| John Salmons | 32 | 8-21 | 2-11 | 2-2 | 3 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 20 |
| Rudy Gay | 32 | 12-17 | 2-3 | 3-7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 29 |
| Carlos Boozer | 32 | 10-17 | 0-0 | 1-3 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 21 |
| Marcin Gortat | 32 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 8 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 2 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Rafer Alston | 15 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Demar DeRozan | 9 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Udonis Haslem | 12 | 4-7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Martell Webster | 4 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Kwame Brown | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jamario Moon | 6 | 1-2 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Daequan Cook - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 41-81 | 4-18 | 10-16 | 34 | 25 | 9 | 4 | 18 | 96 | |
Monday, May 30, 2011
Posted on May 30, 2011 at 04:58 PM.
PHOENIX, Ariz. – Memphis Grizzlies superstar Kobe Bryant exploded for 45 points on 18-34 shooting (including 7-12 from beyond the arc), but it wasn’t enough for the visitors, as they fell to the Phoenix Suns 103-95 in Phoenix on Friday night.Kevin Durant flexed his muscle for the Suns as he posted 28 points and a career-high 15 rebounds for his second double-double of the year as Phoenix improved to 5-0 on the young season.
“That kid can play, man,” a dejected Kobe Bryant, referring to Durant, said to reporters following his season-high 45 points in defeat. “He was a beast on the boards and really came through for his team tonight. We are struggling a bit right now, but things will come together for us. I look forward to the rematch next week with these guys, next time we will come out on top, I guarantee it.”
This was a game of spurts, as so many games are, and the Grizzlies made a big 10-2 run to cut into the deficit and cut the lead to three points at the break. Memphis continued on the comeback trail, eventually pulling ahead 59-58 on the back of a 12-4 run capped off by a Trevor Ariza layup with 5:20 remaining in the third.
The Suns answered back with a large run of their own, outscoring the visitors 16-3 to grab a 74-62 lead, thanks to 10 straight points by Durant.
It seemed as though Pheonix was going to coast to victory, but then Bryant exploded. He scored 29 of his 45 points in the second half, including 12 straight points to bring the Grizzlies within six at 96-90.
“You have to give them credit,” Durant stated after the Suns fifth consecutive win. “They just wouldn’t go away. Kobe (Bryant) was unstoppable at times, man, but we were able to hold on, and I am getting used to this winning thing. We have a tough matchup in Atlanta, and that is now our focus.”
Durant hit a three-pointer in the corner to halt the run, and the Grizzlies momentum and the Suns were able to pull out the eight point victory.
The Grizzlies (2-4) will continue on their road trip to take on Tim Duncan, Vince Carter and the Sacramento Kings tomorrow night at Arco Arena at 7:30 p.m. PT. The Suns will hit the road for two games, starting Sunday at 3 p.m. MT at the Phillips Arena in Atlanta against Carlos Boozer, Rudy Gay and the 3-3 Hawks.
| Nov 5, 2010 - MEM at PHX | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Memphis Grizzlies (2-4) | 18 | 27 | 17 | 33 | 95 |
| Phoenix Suns (5-0) | 22 | 26 | 26 | 29 | 103 |
| Memphis Grizzlies | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Tony Parker | 32 | 4-10 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 3 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 |
| Kobe Bryant | 33 | 18-34 | 7-12 | 2-3 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 45 |
| Trevor Ariza | 31 | 8-16 | 2-4 | 2-3 | 8 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 20 |
| David Lee | 29 | 3-9 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Shaquille O'Neal | 30 | 3-6 | 0-1 | 2-2 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 8 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Sasha Vujacic | 7 | 2-6 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 |
| Al Harrington | 16 | 1-4 | 0-2 | 1-2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 |
| Nikola Pekovic | 5 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Quincy Pondexter | 1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Samardo Samuels | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jarrett Jack | 12 | 0-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Elliot Williams - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 39-91 | 10-23 | 7-12 | 34 | 23 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 95 | |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 27 | 4-8 | 1-1 | 2-2 | 0 | 11 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 11 |
| Marcus Thornton | 29 | 9-17 | 3-7 | 2-2 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 23 |
| Kevin Durant | 33 | 12-23 | 2-4 | 2-2 | 15 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 28 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 30 | 6-17 | 0-1 | 3-3 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 15 |
| Tyson Chandler | 30 | 3-3 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 13 | 2-4 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 14 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 9 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Omer Asik | 8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 4 | 0-1 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 13 | 3-3 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| James Jones | 3 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 43-82 | 7-15 | 10-11 | 49 | 30 | 7 | 4 | 14 | 103 | |
Sunday, May 29, 2011
Posted on May 29, 2011 at 09:13 PM.
PHOENIX, Ariz. – The Phoenix Suns struggled in the first quarter at home for the second straight time at home, but were able to pull off an 89-85 win over the visiting San Antonio Spurs.Despite a sloppy start with five turnovers and a poor shooting effort in the first quarter, Dirk Nowitzki and the Suns came away with their fourth consecutive win to begin the 2010/2011 NBA season. Nowitzki finished his day as the game’s scoring leader with 24 points on 12-18 shooting.
“We need to fix the way we have been starting games,” Nowitzki told reporters following the game Wednesday night. “It’s been sloppy, convoluted and has started us in a hole to start games. In this league, that type of thing will start catching up to us if we don’t address it now.”
Phoenix trailed by as many as 12 points in the first half, thanks to a huge second quarter effort off the bench from San Antonio’s Jason Thompson. Thompson was 5-6 in the period with 11 points. Phoenix was able to rally to tie the game going into halftime on the back of a 10-0 run in the final 3:14 of the second quarter. That run was capped by a Mike Conley three-pointer, as he went into the locker room with 10 first half points.
“I think the key for us this evening was when Dirk (Nowitzki) came out on fire in the third;” Suns head coach Alvin Gentry told media in his press conference following the win. “He showed why he is a superstar in this league, and made sure our guys played well out of the break. It’s always important to keep momentum as long as possible, because it can change at any moment. Tonight, like last Friday (against the Lakers), we were able to hold off a late run and win the ballgame.”
Nowitzki came out firing in the third quarter after scoring 10 first half points. He carried the load for Phoenix, scoring 12 points, shooting 6-7 from the field. It was a back and forth battle between superstars as Brandon Roy put up 13 points of his own, despite his poor shooting the rest of the game. Roy was just 7-25 from the field in the game, but was 5-8 in the third, bringing San Antonio within one point after three.
The Suns bench, fueled by Brandon Bass, Nick Young and Krik Hinrich played a big role in the beginning of the fourth quarter, as they combined to score the first 11 points of the period for Phoenix. Bass finished with 10 points, while Hinrich added a season-high 10 assists in his reserve role.
Unable to fully pull away, Phoenix found itself in another close game as the final minutes approached. Spurs sixth man Mike Miller’s finish in traffic tied things at 85 with 1:51 remaining after a nice pass by Raymond Felton, but San Antonio could not find a way to take the lead.
Conley hit a monster fadeaway jumper as the shot clock expired with 1:27 left to put the Suns on top for good. After a stop by each team, Felton had a chance to pull the Spurs level at 87, but his jumper was blocked by Conley, causing a shot clock violation. Kevin Durant made two free throws with 2.5 seconds remaining to seal the victory for Phoenix. He finished with 19 points on 7-19 shooting from the field.
The Spurs (0-4) will host the Houston Rockets and Pau Gasol on Saturday night at 7:30 CT at the AT&T Center, while Phoenix (4-0) hosts the Memphis Grizzlies and Kobe Bryant on Friday night at 7 p.m. MT from the US Airways Center.
Notable Statistics: PHX: D. Nowitzki: 24 pts, 5 ast; M. Conley: 14 pts, 8 ast; K. Durant: 19 pts (7-19 fgs); B. Bass: 10 pts (5-6 fgs); K. Hinrich: 10 ast.
SA: B. Roy: 18 pts (7-25 fgs); R. Hibbert: 16 pts (8-10 fgs), 4 blk; K. Humphries: 12 pts, 13 rebs; M. Miller: 13 pts.
| Nov 3, 2010 - SA at PHX | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| San Antonio Spurs (0-4) | 26 | 18 | 22 | 19 | 85 |
| Phoenix Suns (4-0) | 20 | 24 | 23 | 22 | 89 |
| San Antonio Spurs | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Raymond Felton | 33 | 1-7 | 0-1 | 4-4 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 6 |
| Brandon Roy | 30 | 7-25 | 3-15 | 1-1 | 6 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 18 |
| Ryan Gomes | 15 | 3-6 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Kris Humphries | 28 | 4-8 | 0-1 | 4-5 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 12 |
| Roy Hibbert | 34 | 8-10 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 16 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Miller | 28 | 6-16 | 1-4 | 0-0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 13 |
| Jason Thompson | 15 | 5-7 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| Brad Miller | 7 | 0-4 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Aaron Gray | 1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Joe Smith | 6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gordan Hayward | 6 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Devin Ebanks | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| TEAM TOTALS | 34-84 | 6-25 | 11-15 | 40 | 20 | 13 | 5 | 11 | 85 | |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 26 | 6-8 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 5 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 14 |
| Marcus Thornton | 24 | 5-12 | 2-6 | 0-1 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 12 |
| Kevin Durant | 29 | 7-19 | 1-6 | 4-4 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 19 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 29 | 12-18 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 24 |
| Tyson Chandler | 34 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-2 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 17 | 3-7 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 15 | 1-6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 |
| Omer Asik | 7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 12 | 5-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| James Jones | 7 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 39-77 | 7-20 | 4-8 | 38 | 28 | 10 | 6 | 13 | 89 | |
Kevin Durant was the high point man for Phoenix for the third consecutive game, scoring 31 (14-23 shooting) points and pulling down a season-high 12 rebounds. Dirk Nowitzki struggled, picking up a quick three fouls and scoring just six first half points. He finished with 22, though it took him 20 shots to do so. It was Marcus Thornton who shouldered the load, scoring 27 points on 12-19 shooting, including 3-4 from three-point land.
“Tonight was my night to step up,” said Thornton in the home locker room after the Suns 111-109. “Every single one of us have the ability to pick up slack when KD (Durant) and Dirk (Nowitzki) might be struggling a bit. Dirk was in some foul trouble, and my number was called. The important thing is the win, and I am happy to have contributed to it.”
After falling behind early, the Suns went on a 10-0 run to close the first quarter and take a 26-25 lead. Monta Ellis led the way for Los Angeles, scoring 30 points, grabbing six rebounds and dishing out five assists.
“We fought hard out there tonight, but it wasn’t enough,” said a somber Ellis in the Lakers locker room Friday night. “I could care less about the 30 points, I am just disappointed we couldn’t pull it off. We need to fix things to be better in late game situations.”
Durant was key in the first half for Pheonix, scoring 22 of his 31 points when Nowitzki was on the bench. Los Angeles used a 14-2 run late in the second quarter, fueled by Ellis to take a 56-51 lead into halftime.
The fourth quarter was a see-saw affair, that was tied at 103 with 2:01 remaining on a fastbreak dunk by Paul George. Trailing 107-105 with 0:58 on the clock, Thornton hit a pair of three-pointers to put the Suns on top for good, 111-107.
Aaron Brooks, who shot just 3-15 from the field and finished with 10 points and 11 assists missed a fallaway jumper with seconds remaining that would have tied the game at 111.
Los Angeles (0-2) will take on the Golden State Warriors at home on Sunday, Oct. 31, while the Suns will host the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. MT.
Notable Statistics: PHX: K. Durant: 31 pts, 12 rebs; M. Thornton: 27 pts, 7 rebs (12-19 fgs); M. Conley: 10 pts, 14 ast.
LAL: M. Ellis: 30 pts, 6 rebs, 5 ast; T. Murphy 17 pts (7-12 fgs); P. George 17 pts; J. Dudley 10 pts (4-6 fgs); A. Brooks 10 pts, 11 ast (3-15 fgs).
| Oct 29, 2010 - LAL at PHX | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Los Angeles Lakers (0-2) | 25 | 31 | 21 | 32 | 109 |
| Phoenix Suns (3-0) | 26 | 25 | 30 | 30 | 111 |
| Los Angeles Lakers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Aaron Brooks | 32 | 3-15 | 0-3 | 4-4 | 4 | 11 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 10 |
| Monta Ellis | 32 | 12-25 | 0-0 | 6-8 | 6 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 30 |
| Paul George | 28 | 8-14 | 0-4 | 1-1 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 17 |
| Troy Murphy | 30 | 7-12 | 3-5 | 0-0 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| Glen Davis | 32 | 1-3 | 0-0 | 2-2 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Jared Dudley | 10 | 4-6 | 2-3 | 0-0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| Keyon Dooling | 9 | 3-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Matt Janning | 6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Mike Harris | 2 | 2-3 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Willie Green | 9 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
| Daniel Orton | 6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Zaza Pachulia | 6 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| TEAM TOTALS | 44-89 | 6-18 | 15-19 | 38 | 29 | 10 | 1 | 7 | 109 | |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 25 | 5-7 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| Marcus Thornton | 28 | 12-19 | 3-4 | 0-1 | 7 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 27 |
| Kevin Durant | 31 | 14-23 | 1-3 | 2-2 | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 31 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 28 | 10-20 | 2-4 | 0-0 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 22 |
| Tyson Chandler | 30 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 15 | 1-5 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 17 | 2-6 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 3 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 5 |
| Omer Asik | 9 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 11 | 3-3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| James Jones | 5 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 51-87 | 7-16 | 2-3 | 39 | 35 | 5 | 6 | 12 | 111 | |
Kevin Durant led the way again for Phoenix, as he posted 31 points, topping 30 for the second consecutive game. Dirk Nowitzki wasn’t far behind with 26 points and 11 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.
“We are very comfortable as a unit right now,” Durant said in his postgame interview. “Although I struggled from the three point line tonight (1-7) I knew that the guys would get me the ball in spots I can score and at times, the basket looks real big to me. We are happy with this win and look forward to seeing our fans in Phoenix tomorrow night.”
Mike Conley and Marcus Thornton also hit double figures again for the Suns, who used an 11-2 run midway through the fourth quarter to take control. Conley added 10 points and 10 assists, while Thornton took advantage of the space given by the Utah defense, going 6-7 from the floor for 13 points.
“When my shot isn’t there like tonight (4-14 shooting), I am just happy to find my teammates and create easy buckets for them,” stated an upbeat Conley. “Tomorrow will be a difficult test, but we are excited to take on the Lakers.”
Wesley Matthews led the way for the Jazz with 20 points on 8-12 shooting, including 2-2 from three point land. He led a quintet of Utah players in double figures on the night, including Yao Ming (16 points, 5 blocks), Ron Artest (14 points, 7 rebounds), Chauncey Billups (12 points, 7 assists and 5 rebounds on 4-18 shooting), and Patrick Patterson (11 points).
The Jazz (0-2) will try to get in the win column on Sunday night in Oklahoma City against the Dwyane Wade, Zach Randolph and the Thunder. Phoenix (2-0) will look to make it three straight tomorrow night at 7:30 p.m. MT against the Monta Ellis led Lakers.
Notable Statistics
PHX: K. Durant: 31 pts, 4 rebs; D. Nowitzki: 26 pts, 11 rebs; M. Conley: 10 pts, 10 ast; M. Thornton: 13 pts.
UTAH: W. Matthews: 20 pts, 4 rebs; Y. Ming: 16 pts, 5 blk, 4 rebs, 4 ast; R. Artest: 14 pts, 7 rebs.
| Oct 28, 2010 - PHX at UTAH | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (2-0) | 20 | 22 | 25 | 27 | 94 |
| Utah Jazz (0-2) | 19 | 17 | 26 | 19 | 81 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 30 | 4-14 | 2-6 | 0-0 | 1 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
| Marcus Thornton | 29 | 6-7 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 13 |
| Kevin Durant | 32 | 14-28 | 1-7 | 2-3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 31 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 32 | 11-21 | 0-2 | 4-4 | 11 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 26 |
| Tyson Chandler | 30 | 3-3 | 0-0 | 0-1 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 12 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 11 | 2-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| Omer Asik | 8 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Brandon Bass | 12 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| James Jones | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 42-80 | 4-18 | 6-8 | 29 | 25 | 11 | 10 | 13 | 94 | |
| Utah Jazz | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Chauncey Billups | 33 | 4-18 | 0-7 | 4-4 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 12 |
| Wesley Matthews | 30 | 8-12 | 2-2 | 2-2 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 20 |
| Ron Artest | 31 | 6-15 | 2-7 | 0-0 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
| Patrick Patterson | 29 | 5-10 | 0-0 | 1-1 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 |
| Yao Ming | 30 | 8-11 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 16 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Drew Gooden | 12 | 3-8 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 |
| Luc Richard Mbah a Moute | 10 | 1-4 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Antonio Daniels | 3 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Derek Fisher | 5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Cole Aldrich | 11 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Anthony Parker | 11 | 0-4 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Kyle Korver - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 35-82 | 4-19 | 7-7 | 35 | 20 | 10 | 5 | 12 | 81 | |
In addition to the big nights by Durant and Nowitzki, Phoenix floor general Mike Conley set a career-high with 16 assists and also added 11 points. Marcus Thornton played his role of complimentary scorer well as he came up with 14 points on 6-10 shooting.
“I know my role on this team, and it is simply to take the load off of Kevin and Dirk,” Thornton said after his solid debut performance. “We jelled really well in the preseason, and that certainly carried over tonight. This team is ready to do big things, and tonight was just the beginning.”
Head coach Alvin Gentry preached tempo for his new group of Suns, going slightly against his philosophy last season, but the running game produced results that no one will argue with.
“Everyone has to make adjustments with these new rosters, so I believe Portland will rebound and come together nicely,” said Gentry in his postgame news conference. “We dictated the pace tonight, and will look to do the same each night. You will see a lot of effort from our guys every night, and I am very happy with the start this evening.”
Portland was led by Rashard Lewis, who put up 28 points of his own, shooting 5-14 from behind the arc, but it was nowhere near enough for the Blazers, who fell to 0-1. They travel to Los Angeles tomorrow night to take on Dwight Howard and the Clippers. The Suns travel to Salt Lake City to take on the Utah Jazz on Thursday night from the EnergySolutions Arena at 7:30 p.m. MT.
Notable Statistics
PHX: K. Durant: 33 pts, 5 rebs; D. Nowitzki: 30 pts, 8 rebs; M. Conley: 11 pts, 16 ast; M. Thornton: 14 pts, 6 rebs; N. Young 11 pts.
POR: R. Lewis: 28 pts; D. Rose: 10 pts on 3-15 fgs, M. Redd 14 pts, 7 ast; W. Johnson: 13 pts.
| Oct 26, 2010 - PHX at POR | |||||
| TEAM | 1ST | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | SCORE |
| Phoenix Suns (1-0) | 38 | 29 | 26 | 26 | 119 |
| Portland Trailblazers (0-1) | 23 | 20 | 25 | 22 | 90 |
| Phoenix Suns | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Mike Conley | 24 | 4-7 | 1-2 | 2-2 | 3 | 16 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 |
| Marcus Thornton | 21 | 6-9 | 1-2 | 1-2 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Kevin Durant | 28 | 13-18 | 2-5 | 5-6 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 33 |
| Dirk Nowitzki | 32 | 10-19 | 2-5 | 8-8 | 8 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 30 |
| Tyson Chandler | 25 | 2-6 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Nick Young | 14 | 3-4 | 2-2 | 3-4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 11 |
| Kirk Hinrich | 17 | 3-7 | 0-2 | 1-1 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 7 |
| Omer Asik | 16 | 2-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Thabo Sefalosha | 10 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 2-4 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| Brandon Bass | 9 | 0-1 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| James Jones | 9 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Daniel Gibson - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 44-74 | 8-18 | 23-29 | 37 | 30 | 15 | 3 | 12 | 119 | |
| Portland Trailblazers | ||||||||||
| STARTERS | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Derrick Rose | 33 | 3-15 | 0-4 | 4-4 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 10 |
| Michael Redd | 26 | 6-12 | 2-5 | 0-0 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| Rashard Lewis | 32 | 10-20 | 5-14 | 3-3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 28 |
| Derrick Favors | 33 | 5-5 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 9 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 10 |
| Greg Oden | 33 | 5-7 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 11 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 10 |
| BENCH | MIN | FGM-A | 3PM-A | FTM-A | REB | AST | STL | BLK | TO | PTS |
| Wesley johnson | 13 | 4-10 | 0-0 | 5-5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 |
| Jonas Jerebko | 8 | 1-2 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Al Thornton | 9 | 1-1 | 0-0 | 0-0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Darko Milicic | 9 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 1-2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 1 |
| Mustafa Shakur | 8 | 0-3 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Bill Walker | 3 | 0-2 | 0-2 | 0-0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Shawne Williams - DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| TEAM TOTALS | 35-79 | 7-27 | 13-14 | 32 | 22 | 12 | 3 | 16 | 90 | |
After The Durantula had landed in the Valley of the Sun, the 33rd overall selection was Dirk Nowitzki, who helped form a fantastic one-two punch. The rest of the roster filled out as follows:
| Phoenix Suns Depth Chart - 2010 | ||||
| STARTER | 2ND | 3RD | 4TH | |
| PG | Mike Conley | Kirk Hinrich | Daniel Gibson | |
| SG | Marcus Thornton | Nick Young | Thabo Sefalosha | |
| SF | Kevin Durant | James Jones | ||
| PF | Dirk Nowitzki | Brandon Bass | ||
| C | Tyson Chandler | Omer Asik | ||
After a few scouting hires, it was time to open the 2011 season, as Phoenix looks to use it’s revamped, retooled roster to get to that elusive first championship in franchise history. The journey began on Oct. 26 at the Rose Garden in Portland, OR against their Western Conference foes, the Portland Trailblazers.
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