Phoenix Suns bounced back from a slow start to beat Denver Nuggets
Phoenix Suns found themselves trailing by 15 points in the first half, but they bounced back in the second half to beat the Denver Nuggets, 100-94, behind their tough defence and solid bench
scoring on Monday 15 November at the US Airways Center in Phoenix.
Hakim Warrick came off the bench to lead the Suns’ six double-digit scorers with his 21 points, while Channing Frye and Steve Nash added 15 points apiece, helping the Suns bag their third-straight
win after starting their campaign this season with a 2-4 record.
“I think guys are starting to get comfortable playing with each other and it's shown in the last couple of games we've played,” said Suns guard Jason Richardson, who scored 11 points and
grabbed six rebounds for the Suns.
Phoenix had a slow start as they struggled to find their rhythm in the first half, and the Nuggets took advantage of it and they led by as much as 15 points, 54-39, in the 1:56 mark of the
second period, and ended the half with a 58-46 lead.
However, Phoenix stepped up with their defence in the second half and their bench players started to wax hot as they slowly chipped in to the Nuggets advantage, and finally took a one-point
lead, 83-82, after a running bank shot from Hedo Turkoglu, with 6:28 left in the game.
The Nuggets tried to regain the lead, but the Suns pulled away again after two-straight long-range bombs from Nash and Turkoglu that gave Phoenix a 98-89 lead with 2:50 left. They held on
to their lead, and escape with a hard-earned win.
Despite winning their third-straight game, including a 121-116 win over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday 14 November, Suns head coach Alvin Gentry admitted that they are still finding the
right combination that will lead them to success.
“We've still got to figure out exactly what we are and who we are,” said Gentry. “We have our moments and stuff, but I think we still have to get to the point where, 20-25 games into this,
we've got a really good idea of consistently what we're going to be.”
Carmelo Anthony had a big night for the Nuggets as he racked up 20 points and 22 rebounds, Aaron Afflalo had 15 points and seven rebounds, while Nene, Chauncey Billups, and Al Harrington
had 14 points each, but their productions were not enough as they absorb their 12th-straight defeat in Phoenix since 7 April 2004.
“We didn't have any flow,” said Anthony. “We weren't running our sets. They started making their run and we were just digging ourselves out of a hole.”
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