The agony of defeat: Worst losses in Arizona sports

Embarrassing.

There’s no other word that encapsulates what the Phoenix Suns had to be feeling Wednesday night in their 2017-18 season opener at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

The Portland Trail Blazers basically did whatever they wanted to do for 48 minutes and despite missing their second-best player, left town with an easy 124-76 win over the Suns.

Not only was it easy, it was record-breaking. It’s the worst loss in Phoenix history and the biggest blowout in any NBA season opener.

The Trail Blazers shot 58 percent from three-point range, outrebounded the Suns 57-33 and led by as many as 58 points in the contest.

“Luckily it was only worth one loss. It felt like five,” Suns guard Devin Booker said after the game.

All teams have games like this. They’re almost inexplicable, but over the course of long seasons in sports, they happen.

Here’s a quick rundown of the other beatdowns during which teams from the Grand Canyon State were on the wrong end.

Seattle Seahawks 58, Arizona Cardinals 0

Dec. 9, 2012 at CenturyLink Field – The Cardinals, for much of their time in Arizona, have been no strangers to lopsided losses. In all, they’ve been beaten by 35 or more points on 11 different occasions since arriving from St. Louis in 1988.

But this Week 14 matchup was far worse than any other.

Seattle jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter, then turned the jets on in the second quarter, scoring 28 points and half of those coming from the defense. Richard Sherman picked off quarterback John Skelton and returned it for a touchdown. Four minutes later, Patrick Peterson muffed a punt that was recovered by Malcolm Smith for another score.

The second half was much of the same, as Seattle tacked on 20 more points to win by 58 — the second-biggest point differential in the NFL since Arizona got a franchise. Only the New England Patriots’ 59-0 win over the Tennessee Titans in Week 6 of the 2009 season was worse.

The Cardinals turned the ball over eight times, including four interceptions by Skelton. Arizona was outgained 493-154 and managed only 10 first downs on the day.

“For them to come out and dominate the way they did in every phase of the game it’s embarrassing,” Skelton said.

The game, which was Arizona’s ninth straight loss, led to big changes for the organization. Steve Keim was promoted to general manager and head coach Ken Whisenhunt was fired, paving the way for Bruce Arians to take over the team.

Los Angeles Dodgers 19, Arizona Diamondbacks 1

Sept. 2, 2002 at Bank One Ballpark – This was a little strange, all things considered. After all, the D-backs were the defending World Series champs and were in first place again, despite entering the game having lost four of their last five.

None of it mattered on this night in early September, however.

The Dodgers jumped on Arizona starter Rick Helling in the second inning, scoring five runs. Shawn Green and Brian Jordan went back-to-back on solo homers to open the frame. Later, opposing pitcher Odalis Perez knocked in two with a double and Paul Lo Duca then doubled in Perez.

Los Angeles wasn’t nearly done.

Adrian Beltre and Green added run-scoring hits in fourth. The got a single run in the fifth, and two more in the sixth. Then came the disastrous seventh inning. D-backs reliever Eddie Oropesa was tagged for eight runs in the frame, including home runs from Beltre and Mike Kinkade.

Trailing 18-0 heading into the ninth, manager Bob Brenly went to an unlikely source to close out the game — first baseman Mark Grace. Keeping things in perspective, Grace had fun on the mound, mimicking the signature pre-pitch antics of teammate Mike Fetters and actually retired three of the four hitters he faced. But backup catcher David Ross did connect for a solo home run — the Dodgers’ fifth of the game — to close out L.A.’s scoring. It was the first career HR for Ross, who would go on to hit 105 more over a colorful career that ended in 2016.

The Diamondbacks did prevent the embarrassing loss from being a shutout when a Rod Barajas sac fly scored Greg Colbrunn with two outs in the ninth inning.

In all, D-backs pitching was rocked for 24 hits — 11 of which were of the extra-base variety. Nine different Dodgers had at least two hits and 10 different L.A. hitters knocked in a run.

Detroit Red Wings 9, Phoenix Coyotes 2

Oct. 11, 2006 at Joe Louis Arena – The Coyotes have had a couple of 7-goal losses in their history, including a 7-0 loss at Pittsburgh last December, but this early-season beatdown may have been uglier.

Things actually looked good early, when Phoenix forward Mike Comrie tied the score at 1-1 after beating Detroit goalie Dominik Hasek at the 6:12 mark of the first period.

Then the second period happened.

The Red Wings reeled off five goals in about 14 minutes of playing time, including two from defenseman Mathieu Schneider to make it 7-1 after two periods. Goalie Curtis Joseph was pulled and relieved by backup Mike Morrison, who allowed two more goals to make it 9-1. Ed Jovanovski softened the blow for the Coyotes, scoring midway through the third.

But the damage was done. Schneider, 37 at the time, had just his second (and last) career hat trick and led nine Red Wings players who had two or more points in the game.

“It wasn’t much fun out there, there’s no question about that,” Phoenix coach Wayne Gretzky said. “They basically embarrassed us as a team. I don’t think our team can get much lower than this.”

Detroit Red Wings’ Brad Norton, back left, congratulates teammate Mathieu Schneider (23) after Schneider’s third goal of the game against Phoenix Coyotes and goalie Curtis Joseph, right, during the second period of their NHL Hockey game on Wednesday, Oct. 11, 2006 in Detroit. (AP Photo/Jerry S. Mendoza)

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