Andrea Bargnani on fire as Toronto Raptors defeat Phoenix Suns 99 – 96 –NBA Recap(Part 1)
The Toronto Raptors put in a strong display and survived a late scare to win 99 – 96 against the Phoenix Suns. The game at the US Airways Center in Phoenix was filled with quite a few twists and turns but the Raptors were able to edge out their opponents in the end.
Andrea Bargnani was the key reason for Toronto’s success as the big man dominated from start to finish. Bargnani had a terrific night out, garnering a game high 36 points alongside 6 rebounds. The forward was a thorn in the Phoenix Suns’ flesh all game long as they often found him unstoppable.
Raptors also received good contributions from James Johnson, who scored 18 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to complete a double-double performance, and Leandro Barbosa, who came off the bench for 19 valuable points.
Marcin Gortat shone for the Suns, albeit in a losing effort. The centre had 21 points and 12 rebounds to his name for the double-double. Talismanic point guard Steve Nash once again defied his old age to put up incredible numbers at 17 rebounds and 14 assists.
Hakim Warrick gave good impetus to his side coming off the bench for 17 points.
The game started at a fairly even note and the teams were very close near the halfway mark of the first quarter at 10 – 9 to the Raptors. The Suns then went on an incredible 18 – 7 run, sending the home crowd into frenzy and finishing the first period ahead by double digits at 27 – 17.
Phoenix though weren’t in for an easy ride as the Raptors started their fight back in the second period. They piled on 31 points against 25 by the Suns and went in at halftime behind by just 4 points, 52 – 48.
The game turned in the third quarter as the Raptors came out hot after the interval. They took the game to the Suns and dominated the segment, ending it up at 79 – 71. The Suns made some decent attempts at a comeback late in the fourth period and gave Toronto quite a scare before eventually bowing out, Raptors winning the game 99 – 96.
Tags: