Steve Nash shines as Phoenix Suns down Golden State Warriors 102-91: NBA Recap
Phoenix Suns and their talisman Steve Nash are slowly getting back in rhythm.
On Monday night, the team used a fourth quarter muscle to edge past Golden State Warriors 102-91, and improve their record to 2-3.
Nash, who looked out of practice and completely offbeat in the first 4 games was heading to another failure tonight - 8 points in three quarters, however in the decisive quarter, he changed gears and scored 13 points to finish
as the game’s top scorer.
Nash finished with 21 points including 9 for 13 from the floor and also dished out 9 assists. Rookie Markieff Morris came off the bench for 16 points and 9 boards while Jared Dudley also had 15 points to go with 10 apiece from
Shannon Brown and Channing Frye.
Warriors, having Monta Ellis back in the lineup after a one game absence due to the death of his grandmother, outclassed the Suns in the shooting department (50% - 44.8%) from the floor and (41.2% - 34.8) from the long range, however
they were outrebounded 49-36 and committed 17 turnovers which allowed Suns some easy points in transition.
Warrior’s coach Mark Jackson was naturally disappointed with the outcome of the game.
"You shoot 50 percent on the road, you should come out with a win. Put teams on the foul line, turn the ball over and give up 16 offensive rebounds, it's a recipe for disaster. I understand this is a process, but this is a 66-game
season. We need to speed up the process." He said
Monta Ellis paced the Warriors with 18 points and 11 assists while Dominic McGuire, playing in place of David Lee who missed the game due to unannounced illness, hammered 14 points and pulled down 9 rebounds. Brandon Rush came
off the bench and added 13 on 2 for 4 from the downtown.
Rush drilled a 3 in the dying moments of the third quarter to ensure Warriors entered the deciding frame just behind by 69-72. However the Warriors completely froze in the opening minutes of the fourth frame, allowing Suns to complete
a 12-0 run.
Rush and Klay Thompson hit back to back three’s, making it 80-82 midway, but after that, Nash and Dudley took charge and initiated an onslaught that decided the fate of the game.
Warriors had no answers to the attack from Suns and were made to look just like mere spectators.
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