Nash, Stoudemire lead Suns' charge
DALLAS -- They're a resilient bunch.
The Phoenix Suns, minus one of their main guys, rode the devastating 1-2 punch of Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire to a 119-102 victory over the Mavericks last night, regaining the upper hand in this wild and fun Western Conference semifinal. The Suns lead the series, 2-1, with Game 4 tomorrow night at American Airlines Center.
The Suns, who had a league-best 31-10 road record, closed the game with a 22-6 run over the final 5:31, turning a 1-point game into a runaway. Nash had 27 points and a playoff career-best 17 assists, and Stoudemire had 37 points, 14 rebounds, and was an inside terror all night (five blocks). Shawn Marion added 21 for the Suns, who have not lost on the road in the playoffs (3-0) and are 3-0 in American Airlines Center this season.
The one unknown: Can the Suns, whose bench is mighty thin, keep it going at such a hectic pace? All five starters played at least 41 minutes and Phoenix got only 5 points from its bench.
''They looked like they can play some more," marveled Mavericks coach Avery Johnson, who later went on a tirade over the lack of respect accorded Dirk Nowitzki. ''They don't look like they get tired."
Phoenix played without Joe Johnson, who sustained a fractured orbital bone in Game 2. His return date is unknown. But Nash said Johnson's presence was felt last night. ''We got one for Joe," Nash said. ''We all felt sick about what happened."
The Mavericks got 21 points from Nowitzki, who had another long night (8-of-24 shooting) from the field. He's shooting 38 percent from the field in the postseason. But what bothered Johnson was the fact the Mavs didn't attempt a free throw in the fourth quarter because Phoenix was not called for a single team foul in the fourth.
''That's unheard of," Johnson said. Then, the Mavericks coach lashed out at the treatment he says Nowitzki gets from the officials. ''He's one of the least respected, MVP-caliber players that I've ever seen in my life," the coach said. ''He had as good a year as anybody. He survived a coaching change and we won 58 games."
Asked about Johnson's comments, Nowitzki said, ''That's all right. I'll keep coming and working hard, that's all I can do. I'm not going to complain. It's not easy around the basket. I've got to finish and I have to stay aggressive."
It wasn't a lack of respect that felled the Mavericks over the last 5Æ minutes. It was a lack of accuracy. They were right there after Jason Terry hit a short hook with 5:50 left, making it 97-96 Phoenix. The Mavs, who had led by 8 in the first half, did not score again until Nowitzki hit a 17-foot turnaround with 1:41 left, by which time the Suns had constructed a 16-point lead.
Nash started the run with a free throw to make it 98-96 with 5:31 left. The Mavericks then missed their next seven shots while the Suns were converting like clockwork. Nash fed Marion and Jim Jackson for back-to-back 3-pointers. Jackson tipped in a Marion miss. Nash then scored consecutive hoops on a reverse layup and lefty hook over Nowitzki. Marion finished off the run with a dunk off a Marquis Daniels turnover. Fifteen points in less than four minutes and that was the game.
''We had a pretty good rhythm in the second half," Nash said. ''We felt we still had a run left in us. That's the beauty of our guys. I thought we really stuck together and, when things got tight, we stayed with it. We're a resilient team."
That they are.
