Suns Strokes: Suns continue playing hard for Jay Triano, beat Jazz

PHOENIX — Two games into his tenure as Phoenix Suns interim head coach, Jay Triano has made one thing perfectly clear: Play hard, play well and you’ll play more.

That philosophy was on display in his debut on Monday and then again on Wednesday.

Off the bench, Alex Len and Tyler Ulis each had 13 points as the Suns’ second-unit combined for 38 points in a 97-88 win over the Utah Jazz in front of an announced crowd of 16,022 at Talking Stick Resort Arena.

Len added 13 rebounds for his first double-double of the season.

T.J. Warren led all scorers with 27 points, 20 coming in the second half, and Devin Booker chipped in 17.

The Suns never trailed.

Now 2-0 under Triano — and 2-3 overall — the Suns are not only getting good bench production — they outscored the Jazz reserves, 38-9 — but playing better defense. They limited the Jazz (2-3), coming off a loss at the L.A. Clippers the night before, to 41.6 percent shooting, while the 88 points scored were the fewest the Suns allowed since giving up 87 in a 92-87 win at Orlando on Nov. 23, 2016.

The Suns also had the edge in rebounding, 55-44, and forced Utah into 24 turnovers leading to 27 points.

The defense more than made up for a not-so-great shooting night (43.8 percent), though Warren was efficient, making 12-of-20 attempts in what was his best effort of the season.

The win snapped the Suns’ seven-game losing streak to the Jazz, who placed five players in double figures, led by Rodney Hood’s 22 points.

THE GOOD

For the second straight game, the Suns jumped out to a quick lead, and it was Tyson Chandler who set the tone. He filled the stat sheet with four points, four rebounds, one block and one steal in the game’s first three-plus minutes. He added two more points and two more rebounds before the end of the quarter, one in which the Suns led, 23-13. The 13 Jazz points, by the way, marked a Suns opponent season-low for any quarter.

Twenty of the Suns’ 25 second-quarter points were scored by the second-unit. Ulis (nine points) and Len (six) combined for 15 points with Dragan Bender and Josh Jackson adding three and two points, respectively. Highlighting the bench play was this sequence: Jackson drew a charge on Joe Ingles and then a couple of possessions later showed off his playmaking skills with a behind-the-back pass to Len for a dunk.

The second half belonged to Warren. He scored the Suns’ first eight and 10 of their first 13 points in the third quarter, and then he scored the Suns’ first six, eight of their first 12 and 10 of their first 14 points in the fourth quarter. Most of his baskets, as to be expected, were scored at or near the rim but he did make a 13-foot and 24-foot jump shot. Overall, Warren had 20 points on 10-of-14 shooting from the field in the second half.

THE BAD

As good as the start was, the end of the first quarter left a lot to be desired. They went four minutes without a made field goal, seeing a nine-point lead trimmed to five. The only points scored, or point as it turned out, was a Len free throw. In addition, the Suns turned the ball over three times during this stretch. Fortunately, Troy Daniels bailed his teammates out with five quick points in the final minute to push the lead back up to double digits, 23-13, at halftime.

There was no stopping Hood in the second quarter. After missing the past two games with a mild left lower leg strain, the fourth-year player out of Duke lit up the home team for 13 of his 15 first-half points in the period. Hood had scoring binges of seven and six points; the latter on a 3-pointer and three free throws as he was fouled attempting a 3-pointer. Hood shot 4-of-7 from the field, including three three-pointers, and 3-of-4 from the foul line to account for his 13 points.

The time on the clock read 8:01, so four minutes into the third quarter and the Jazz were already in the penalty. It was a Bender foul on Derrick Favors that put the Suns over the limit. Prior to that foul, however, Warren was whistled twice and Chandler once, his fourth, forcing Triano to go to his bench and re-insert Len into the lineup. Fortunately, again, for the Suns, the Jazz did very little to capitalize as they made only 5-of-9 from the charity stripe in the period.

Marquese Chriss sprained his left ankle with 3:29 left in the fourth quarter. He was defending Favors in the post, and after contesting the shot, his left foot landed on either Len or Favors’ foot. He was helped to the locker room and did not return to the game. X-rays were negative and he’s day-to-day.

STAT OF THE GAME

24: The 24 turnovers by the Jazz are the most by a Suns opponent since Minnesota committed 25 on Dec. 13, 2015; and for Utah, it was their most turnovers in a game since 25 on Feb. 26 of last season at Washington. In addition, the 24 turnovers are more than Utah had in their last two games against the Suns combined (23).

HE SAID IT

“Our bench guys were great,” Triano said. “Tyler has been playing very well. Josh Jackson comes in and he just brings great energy and he’s a guy who wants to be a great defender. Alex, I don’t think he had a great game the other night, but Tyson played a lot of minutes, and tonight Alex comes in and just goes to the rim, goes to the rim and when he goes to the rim, good things happen. I was pleased with all of our guys.”

NOTED

Triano became only the sixth of 18 Suns coaches in franchise history to begin his tenure with a perfect 2-0 record.

Chandler grabbed 10 rebounds (four offensive, six defensive), his third straight game with double-digit rebounds.

For the second straight game, the Suns led by at least 10 points after the first quarter; they are a +29 in this stretch.

Eric Bledsoe missed his second straight game since being sent home by the team prior to Monday’s shootaround.

Brandon Knight (ACL) , Davon Reed (knee), Alec Peters (G League) and Alan Williams (knee) were listed inactive.

UP NEXT

The first extended road trip of the season.

The Suns will play five games over nine days, beginning with a stop in Portland to face the Trail Blazers on Saturday, Oct. 28. Tip-off is scheduled for 7:00 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning 30 minutes earlier on 98.7 FM Arizona’s Sports Station.

It’s the second meeting between the clubs in the last 10 days.

The Trail Blazers beat the Suns by 48 in the season opener, handing the Suns their largest loss in franchise history and giving Portland its 100th win in the series.

Overall, the Trail Blazers have won six of the last seven matchups with the Suns.

From Portland, the Suns will head east for games against the Nets, Wizards and Knicks before a visit to San Antonio on Nov. 5.

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