Shawn Marion

Shawn Marion scores 29 points to lead scorching Suns over Celtics 116 111

A night after needing two overtimes to escape New Jersey with a win, the last thing the Phoenix Suns wanted was another extra session.

So with their game against the Boston Celtics coming down to the wire yet again, the Suns buckled down and played their best basketball of the night when it mattered most Friday night.

Shawn Marion scored 29 points and Victoria's Steve Nash added 16 points and 14 assists to help Phoenix extend its winning streak to nine games with a 116-111 victory over the Celtics.

``I'm glad we got it over with in regulation,'' Marion said. ``We're all logging a lot of minutes, but sometimes you just got to throw it out the window and get it done. And we did.''

After back-to-back baskets by Paul Pierce and Delonte West gave Boston a 102-101 lead with 3:41 to go, Phoenix scored on its last seven possessions. Marion's three-pointer from the corner put Phoenix up 104-102 with 3:16 left, and Amare Stoudemire followed with a layup.

Al Jefferson pulled Boston to within 110-108 with 1:15 remaining, but the Celtics never got closer. Nash made a 17-foot jumper, then assisted on Marion's jumper to put the game out of reach.

``They don't miss shots,'' Boston coach Glenn `Doc' Rivers said. ``They made some tough shots, and all was set up by one guy _ Steve Nash. He's just an amazing player to watch.''

Pierce scored 36 points for Boston, and Ryan Gomes and Tony Allen added 18 apiece. The Celtics have lost five straight and seven of eight.

Raja Bell and Boris Diaw each added 14 points for Phoenix, which was coming off a 161-157 double-overtime victory over the New Jersey Nets on Thursday night. The Suns, who have won 11 of 12 after starting the season 1-5, won despite tying a season high with 21 turnovers and allowing 18 second-chance points.

``We kind of stole one tonight,'' Nash said. ``We were a little tired, a little sloppy and mentally fatigued. But we stepped up and made the right decisions and plays when it counted.''

After spending the day in their hotel room and skipping shootaround to recover from Thursday night, Phoenix got off to a quick start. The Suns shot 59 per cent in the first quarter to take a 35-33 lead behind 10 points from Marion and nine from Stoudemire.

Phoenix then extended its lead to 59-54 by halftime before the fatigue set in.

Pierce scored 25 in the first half to keep the game close, and Sebastian Telfair scored 12 of his 14 points in the third quarter. The Celtics forced eight Phoenix turnovers in the third while holding the Suns to 21 points to take a 79-71 lead late in the period.

But Phoenix responded with a 9-2 run to end the third, then pulled away in the fourth by shooting 71 per cent and committing only one turnover.

Nash had five assists in the fourth as Phoenix outscored Boston 36-30 in the period.

``I like the way we played tonight,'' Pierce said. ``We turned them over a lot, but the difference was our defence once again. We couldn't get the stops we needed.''

Notes: Boston forward Wally Szczerbiak missed his second game with a sprained left ankle. Celtics coach Doc Rivers said Szczerbiak could return in time for Monday's game in New York. Allen started in his place. ... It was the eighth straight game the Suns outscored their opponent in the first quarter. ... Phoenix has won five straight in Boston since a 109-102 overtime loss on Dec. 7, 2001. ... Nash has 59 assists in his last four games.

Shawn Marion records double double to lead Suns over Bucks 122 116

As they have for nearly two decades now, the Suns beat the Milwaukee Bucks in Phoenix.

This one, though, was tough.

Shawn Marion scored 27 points, 12 in the fourth quarter, and grabbed 14 rebounds to help the Suns hold off Michael Redd and the rest of the Bucks 122-116 on Friday night.

The Suns beat Milwaukee at home for the 19th time in a row, matching the longest active streak of its kind in the NBA. Denver has lost 19 in a row at Sacramento.

Milwaukee last won in Phoenix on Feb. 21, 1987.

In the final 2:49, Marion made eight consecutive free throws and blocked a driving layup by Redd.

Redd finished with 37 points, giving him 82 in his last two contests. Mo Williams added 31 points and 10 rebounds.

``I thought the second half we played about as hard as we could play and they were still scoring,'' Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said of the Bucks. ``When you have somebody like Michael Redd, he puts a lot of pressure on you. He made some shots that were unbelievable.''

Redd made 12 of 20 field goals and 12 of 15 free throws.

``I'm trying to mix my game up,'' he said. ``I'm really trying to attack the rim, get to the free throw line, and it opens up my jump shot. When you've got both of those clicking, it's pretty tough to guard.''

Four players had at least 20 points apiece for Phoenix. Victoria's Steve Nash had 27 points and 11 assists. Amare Stoudemire had 22 points and 11 rebounds before fouling out with 3:09 to play. Leandro Barbosa had 20 points and Raja Bell 18 for the Suns, who have won eight of nine since a 1-5 start.

``We've got lots of guys who can score,'' Nash said. ``We're only going to get better, hopefully, with our chemistry and experience. Offence is not going to be our problem.''

Ruben Patterson scored 10 of his 16 in the fourth quarter for Milwaukee but fouled out with 2:49 to go.

``It was a great game,'' Patterson said. ``I don't want to say anything about the officials. I don't want to get fined, but toward the end, things just didn't go our way.''

The Suns led most of the second half, but never by more than 10 points.

``I was proud of the way we played,'' Bucks coach Terry Stotts said. ``We hung tight. Some things didn't go our way. You hate to put an effort like that out there and not come away with a win, but we competed hard against a good team on the road. With two minutes to go, anything could have happened.''

A pair of emphatic dunks by Stoudemire, one of them on a three-point play, followed by Nash's free throw on a technical foul against Andrew Bogut for tripping, put Phoenix ahead 111-103 with 4{ minutes to go.

The Bucks cut it to 115-112 on two free throws by Ersan Ilyasova with 58 seconds to go, but Marion made four straight free throws to seal the victory.

``I thought in the second half we were better, tougher,'' Nash said. ``We might not have gotten too many more stops, but just the couple that you need.''

Milwaukee scored the final four points of the first half and first five of the second to go up 69-62 on Redd's three-pointer.

The Suns mounted a 15-2 run to take an 80-74 lead on Nash's 18-footer with 6:03 left in the third quarter. Redd's 22-footer cut it to 91-87, but Phoenix scored the final six points of the quarter, capped by Bell's three-pointer, and led 97-87 entering the fourth.

The Bucks shot 62 per cent (28-for-45) and the Suns 54 per cent (25-46) in a mostly defenceless first half that ended with Milwaukee up 64-62.

Notes: The Suns last had five players with at least 20 points apiece when they scored 173 points against Denver on Nov. 10, 1990. ... Barbosa scored 10 points in 2:01 after entering the game in the first quarter. ... Ilyasova was born three months after the Bucks' last victory in Phoenix. ... Phoenix is 30-3 at home against Eastern Conference teams since the start of the 2004-05 season. ... The Bucks are 0-14 at US Airways Center, formerly America West Arena. ... Patterson missed three free throws on what would have been three-point plays.

Marion, Nash combine for 47 points as Suns defeat Clippers 112 104

The Phoenix Suns got their running game in gear _ and a welcome lift from Amare Stoudemire.

The result was a 112-104 home-opening victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.

Shawn Marion had 27 points and 10 rebounds, Victoria's Steve Nash added 20 points and 11 assists, and Stoudemire scored 15 points in 24 minutes off the bench.

The Suns aren't at full speed yet, but they were fast enough.

``It wasn't always pretty, but we scored 64 points in the second half by playing hard, and that's what we have to do,'' Phoenix coach Mike D'Antoni said. ``Right now we're not in the greatest shape but we just have to push through it, push through the first two weeks and we'll be fine.''

Nash had 17 points and eight assists in the second half for a Suns team that last faced the Clippers in winning a seven-game series in the Western Conference semifinals.

Phoenix opened the season with a loss to the Kobe Bryant-less Lakers in Los Angeles on Tuesday night, blowing an early 19-point lead. This time, the Suns had six players in double figures _ three of them off the bench.

``We learned a little bit of a lesson last night,'' Nash said, ``that we were kind of passive and kind of laid down after the big lead. Tonight we were going to make sure that our effort was going to be great. We were going to scrap, we were going to be tough, and I think it showed.''

Stoudemire, looking strong after missing virtually all of last season following knee surgery, had 15 points in 24 minutes. Marcus Banks scored 13 and Leandro Barbosa 11.

Elton Brand scored 28 points and grabbed 13 rebounds for the Clippers in their season opener. Cuttino Mobley and Sam Cassell added 17 points apiece. Shaun Livingston scored 14 but was just 4-of-13.

Nash had 13 points and four assists in the third quarter, when the Suns built a 73-59 lead on Boris Diaw's 18-footer with 4:35 to play. But Los Angeles responded with a 15-4 run, capped by Livingston's 17-footer at the buzzer, to cut it to 77-74 entering the fourth.

But Los Angeles got no closer. James Jones started the fourth quarter with a 3-pointer, triggering a 10-4 spurt that put Phoenix ahead 87-78 on Diaw's 11-foot fadeaway jumper with 8:58 to go. The Clippers got as close as six after that, the last time at 101-95 on Quinton Ross' 13-footer with 3:21 to play.

Diaw, who scored nine of his 15 points in the fourth quarter, made a driving layup to make it 103-95, then Mobley was called for an offensive foul. Nash's 18-footer put Phoenix up 105-95 with 2:15 to play.

The Suns shot 1-for-7 to start the game while the Clippers took an 11-3 lead. But after Stoudemire and Barbosa entered the game, Phoenix made 9-of-11 the rest of the quarter, most of them from inside.

Stoudemire finished the quarter 4-for-4 for eight points in 7{ minutes.

``I felt like I was back to my old self,'' Stoudemire said. ``I'm just trying to build up some good days like that.''

Stoudemire wasn't happy that he played just 12 minutes in Tuesday night's opener, and D'Antoni agreed he should have used the big forward more.

``We talked about that and we both agreed,'' Stoudemire said. ``It's off to a new day and age, and today was a better day.''

The Clippers like a slower tempo, but they fell into the Suns' fast-break trap a few too many times.

``We missed some shots, and when you miss shots, that kind of fuels them,'' Mobley said. ``Their guys get it on the fast break, guys are cutting back door, guys are getting layups, guys were getting threes.''

A 15-4 run to end the first quarter and start the second put Phoenix up for good 28-20 on Jones' two free throws. Banks' inside basket made it 34-26 with 7:36 to go in the half, but Brand and Mobley scored four apiece in an 8-2 spurt that cut the lead to 36-34 with 3:57 to go.

The Suns led 48-45 at the break. Stoudemire had 13 points in 16 minutes at the half, but Nash managed just three points and three assists.

Brand had 14 points and Mobley 10 as the Clippers shot 36 percent in the first two quarters but still trailed by only three.

Notes: Tim Thomas, who left Phoenix for a lucrative free agent contract with the Clippers, was booed sporadically and finished the game 2-for-8 for nine points with eight rebounds. ... The Suns have not started a season 0-2 since 1996-97, when they went a franchise-worst 0-13. ... Brand scored fewer than 30 points against Phoenix for only the second time in the teams' last nine meetings. ... Phoenix's Kurt Thomas fouled out with 7:12 to play _ after just 13 minutes on the court.