azdad1978
Championship!!!!
By Mike Tulumello, Tribune
SALT LAKE CITY — In the end, the score looked like a typical Suns game: a blowout win.
But it wasn't, not with the Suns developing a serious case of board-hands here Tuesday night vs. the Utah Jazz, with a remarkable number of rebounds and loose balls caroming off their hands.
One defensive rebound bounced off Amare Stoudemire and in the hoop. Two points for the Jazz. And yet, the Suns' ability to put teams away remains. They broke free from a relative straight-jacket, a modest 92-90 lead with 6:30 left, sprinting off with an 18-4 run over the next 4 minutes.
"We always know we'll go on a run at some point," said the Suns’ Quentin Richardson.
The final: Suns 115, Jazz 102.
The Suns (12-2) have won eight in a row.
They're 7-1 on the road, the best such start in franchise history.
Why is such a predominately young team playing so well on the road?
"We don't allow crowds, or referees, or poor shooting to get us to drift out of the game," said Steve Nash.
And despite their fast pace, the Suns had just seven turnovers; they rank No. 8 in the league in fewest errors with 14.7. "Familiarity. . . . We're getting to know each other," Nash explained.
Suns coach Mike D'Antoni thinks they can do even better. "We'd like to get that (turnover number) way down," he said. "And I think we can."
In this game, "We weren't sharp," said D'Antoni, who figured that recent time off plus injuries to Nash and Leandro Barbosa played a role.
"Some quirky things happened. But we played pretty good defense down the stretch."
Stoudemire ended with 29 points, nine boards and four blocks, though he had trouble at the other end with Carlos Boozer (27 points, 18 rebounds).
Nash, though rusty at first coming off his concussion, finished strong and had 20 points, 14 assists and just one turnover.
The Suns had plenty of chances to open big leads, but they couldn't make them last, in large part because they couldn't grab loose balls and rebounds. (The Jazz ended up with a 47-32 margin on the boards).
They led just 92-90 midway through the final quarter, then finally broke it open.
Richardson hit a 3-pointer, then Joe Johnson hit a pair of 3-pointers. Nash knocked a ball loose that ended up in the hands of Johnson, who fed Stoudemire for a slam. Stoudemire hit a hook, then Shawn Marion hit Stoudemire with a perfect long bounce pass for another fast-break score.
At the other end, the Jazz — perhaps tiring from the fast pace forced by the Suns — couldn't keep pace.
The Suns were up 110-94, and the fans headed out into the cold Utah night.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=32403
SALT LAKE CITY — In the end, the score looked like a typical Suns game: a blowout win.
But it wasn't, not with the Suns developing a serious case of board-hands here Tuesday night vs. the Utah Jazz, with a remarkable number of rebounds and loose balls caroming off their hands.
One defensive rebound bounced off Amare Stoudemire and in the hoop. Two points for the Jazz. And yet, the Suns' ability to put teams away remains. They broke free from a relative straight-jacket, a modest 92-90 lead with 6:30 left, sprinting off with an 18-4 run over the next 4 minutes.
"We always know we'll go on a run at some point," said the Suns’ Quentin Richardson.
The final: Suns 115, Jazz 102.
The Suns (12-2) have won eight in a row.
They're 7-1 on the road, the best such start in franchise history.
Why is such a predominately young team playing so well on the road?
"We don't allow crowds, or referees, or poor shooting to get us to drift out of the game," said Steve Nash.
And despite their fast pace, the Suns had just seven turnovers; they rank No. 8 in the league in fewest errors with 14.7. "Familiarity. . . . We're getting to know each other," Nash explained.
Suns coach Mike D'Antoni thinks they can do even better. "We'd like to get that (turnover number) way down," he said. "And I think we can."
In this game, "We weren't sharp," said D'Antoni, who figured that recent time off plus injuries to Nash and Leandro Barbosa played a role.
"Some quirky things happened. But we played pretty good defense down the stretch."
Stoudemire ended with 29 points, nine boards and four blocks, though he had trouble at the other end with Carlos Boozer (27 points, 18 rebounds).
Nash, though rusty at first coming off his concussion, finished strong and had 20 points, 14 assists and just one turnover.
The Suns had plenty of chances to open big leads, but they couldn't make them last, in large part because they couldn't grab loose balls and rebounds. (The Jazz ended up with a 47-32 margin on the boards).
They led just 92-90 midway through the final quarter, then finally broke it open.
Richardson hit a 3-pointer, then Joe Johnson hit a pair of 3-pointers. Nash knocked a ball loose that ended up in the hands of Johnson, who fed Stoudemire for a slam. Stoudemire hit a hook, then Shawn Marion hit Stoudemire with a perfect long bounce pass for another fast-break score.
At the other end, the Jazz — perhaps tiring from the fast pace forced by the Suns — couldn't keep pace.
The Suns were up 110-94, and the fans headed out into the cold Utah night.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=32403
