PHOENIX SUNS

Suns Strokes: Eric Bledsoe sniffs triple-double as Phoenix falls to Jazz

Jan 16, 2017, 10:52 PM

Phoenix Suns guard Eric Bledsoe (2) drives past Utah Jazz guard George Hill in the second quarter d...

Phoenix Suns guard Eric Bledsoe (2) drives past Utah Jazz guard George Hill in the second quarter during an NBA basketball game, Monday, Jan. 16, 2017, in Phoenix. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

(AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)

Unfortunately for the Phoenix Suns, Devin Booker did not get his wish.

Remaining in Mexico City, where he totaled 78 points during the Suns’ recent two-game stay, was not an option.

Still, Booker had 25 points on 10-of-22 shooting but missed his final three attempts Monday as he and Phoenix went cold down the stretch in a 106-101 loss to the Utah Jazz in front of 16,767 at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

The Jazz (27-16) scored the game’s last seven points to win their season-high-tying fourth straight and seventh in a row over the Suns, extending their longest streak ever in the series.

They’ve now swept the Suns in back-to-back seasons.

Seven Jazz players hit double-figures in scoring, led by Rudy Gobert’s 18. He also had 17 rebounds.

Gordon Hayward and George Hill each finished with 17, while Joe Johnson added 15 off the bench, including 10 in the fourth quarter highlighted by a pair of clutch 3-pointers.

Utah played without injured starter Rodney Hood.

In their first game back in the U.S., the Suns (13-28) led by as many as 10 points with Booker and Eric Bledsoe leading the charge.

Bledsoe flirted with a triple-double, ending with 31 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.

The Suns were outscored 27-21 in the fourth quarter, a period that featured nine lead changes.

Like the Jazz, the Suns played shorthanded. Starter Tyson Chandler (illness) plus bench players Jared Dudley (dizziness) and Brandon Knight (sprained wrist) did not dress.

The Suns have lost three of four.

THE GOOD

Down eight, the Suns went on a 15-2 run to take their first lead of the game. It was a Booker 3-pointer that put the Suns in front 22-19 at the 3:00 mark of the first quarter. The play was set up by Bledsoe, who accounted for all but two of those initial 22 points. Bledsoe finished the period with a game-high 12 points on 4-of-8 shooting, including a 3-pointer and three free throws; plus he added three assists.

Scoreless in the first quarter, P.J. Tucker exploded for six points in nine second-quarter minutes. He made a pair of layups and threw down a dunk after picking George Hill’s pocket for a steal to put the Suns ahead by five, 34-29, at the 9:20 mark. The six points nearly matched Tucker’s season average of 6.3 points per game. He also added five rebounds in the period, giving him a team-best seven at halftime.

For the third time in four games, T.J. Warren reached double figures in scoring. A nine-point third quarter gave him 13 through three quarters. He finished with 15. Warren scored four different ways: a pair of free throws, fast break layup, 3-pointer and 15-foot turnaround jump shot. He did not miss a shot, playing all 12 minutes of the period and helping the Suns carry an 81-80 lead into the fourth quarter.

Despite the loss, Booker achieved his sixth consecutive game scoring 20+ points, extending the longest such streak of his career. Over this six-game stretch, Booker is averaging 30.0 points on 53.2 percent from the field, including 54.5 percent from beyond the arc. With 16 second-half points, Booker is now averaging 24.7 points after halftime alone in his last three games, including 16.7 in just the fourth quarter.

THE BAD

It was a slow start for the Suns as they missed six of their first seven shot attempts and turned the ball over twice in the game’s first four minutes. As a result, they fell behind by eight, 10-2, a deficit they would face two more times in the first quarter. Hayward had a hand in six of the Jazz 10 points. He finished the period with a team-high 11 on 2-of-5 shooting, including a 3-pointer and six free throws.

With Hayward being held scoreless in the second quarter, the Jazz relied on one-time Suns fan favorite Boris Diaw to lead the offense. And he did. Over a three-plus minute stretch midway through the period, Diaw accounted for 10 straight points with three field goals and two assists. Twice he hit layups and added a six-foot floater. He finished with team-highs in both points (eight) and assists (three).

The only Jazz starter not to score in the first half (or even attempt a shot), Joe Ingles, who got the nod with Hood sidelined, made a trio of 3-pointers in the third quarter; the latter pulled Utah to within a point, 78-77, with 37 seconds remaining in the period. Ingles added a lay-up for a team-best 11-point quarter on 4-of-6 shooting. He also chipped in two rebounds and two assists in 11-plus minutes.

STAT OF THE GAME

22-6, 46-39: The Jazz scored 22 second-chance points and won the rebounding battle by seven, including a 14-6 edge on the offensive glass

HE SAID IT

“This is where we miss Tyson,” head coach Earl Watson said. “To me, second-chance points, 22-6, that’s pretty much the ball game. Tyson has been doing a great job of rebounding. Our leading rebounder was P.J. Tucker with 13. So, I think our guys fought. They did the best they could. We still had a chance to win the game.”

NOTED

– Knight missed his second straight game and third in the last six games overall with what appears to be a nagging wrist injury .

– Hood (right knee hyperextension/bone contusion) didn’t make the trip, missing his first game since Dec. 21 and sixth overall.

– Alan Williams made his first in-game appearance since Dec. 28, snapping a streak of seven straight DNP-Coach’s Decisions.

– The Bledsoe-Booker-Warren-Chriss-Len starting lineup was used for only the sixth time this season, and first since Nov. 18.

– Northern Arizona Suns forward Johnny O’Bryant was named NBA D-League Performer of the Week, the first in team history.

UP NEXT

The stay at home was a brief one.

The Suns will play their next three games on the road, starting with a trip to Cleveland to face the defending NBA champion Cavaliers on Thursday. Tip-off is scheduled for 5 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes earlier on Arizona Sports 98.7 FM.

After trailing by 16 at halftime in the first meeting on Jan. 8 at home, the Suns outscored the Cavs 37-24 and shot 73 percent in the third quarter to get within three points but came up just short to fall 120-116. Bledsoe led the Suns with 31 points and eight assists.

Overall, the Suns have won five of the last 10 and seven of the last 13 in the series.

The Suns will also visit New York and Toronto before concluding their four-day tour through the Eastern Conference.

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