PHOENIX SUNS

Suns Strokes: Suns rally to beat Hornets in overtime

Nov 24, 2012, 5:31 AM | Updated: 5:40 am

Sure, you could read the box score and know who won, but we all know that won’t tell you everything that happened in a basketball game. So, we will give you Suns Strokes, providing you with the analysis, quotes and notes from the Suns’ 111-108 win over the Hornets on November 23. Final Score: Suns 111, Hornets 108

The Good:

The Suns beat the Hornets 111-108 on Friday night at US Airways Center in overtime to improve to 6-7 on the season. With the win the Suns also improve to 3-1 against the Western Conference this season and they earned their fourth straight victory over the Hornets.

Goran Dragic has scored in double figures in all 13 games this season and he is the only Suns’ player to do that this year.

Markieff Morris scored a career-high 23 points and P.J. Tucker recorded a career-high 15 points, including 2-for-3 from three-point land.

The Bad:

The Suns have now trailed by double-digits in 11 of 13 games this season, including six of seven home games.

The Suns trailed by as many as 19 points again Friday against the Hornets. Phoenix has overcome double-digit deficits in four of their five home wins this season, but the players and coaches have said that it takes too much energy and effort to constantly dig yourself out of a large hole.

Noted:

The Suns played a record nine overtime games in the 2010-2011 season, but did not play a single overtime contest last season. This is the Suns’ second overtime game this year and their first since November 14th.

Phoenix finished the third quarter on a 22-7 run to get them back in the game and they are now 2-0 with the revised starting lineup of Goran Dragic, Shannon Brown, Michael Beasley and Marcin Gortat. Head coach Alvin Gentry made the change to his starting lineup on November 21st.

He Said It:

“I can’t say enough about PJ Tucker,” Gentry said. “He epitomizes what we want our entire team to be really. That is just a hard, grind it out worker that never quits on any play.”

Up Next:

The Suns hit the road for a season long six-game trip that starts in Philadelphia on Sunday, November 25th against the Sixers. They’ll then head to Cleveland, Detroit, Toronto, New York and wrap up in Memphis on Tuesday, December 4th.

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