Makes, misses, turnovers, they got out and ran.” “Cameron Payne really set the tone with that. The Suns entered Game 3 ranked 10 th among the 16 teams that advanced to the postseason in pace (98.29). Payne certainly did that in helping Phoenix to a quick start, dishing three assists in the opening half to go with four points while Booker poured in 14 of the team’s first 21 points to start the game. The 28-year-old guard admitted that while Paul might score more efficiently in the midrange, he’d bring a boost of speed to the Suns’ starting group. The Suns are now 2-1 this postseason when the bench contributes 22 points or more.Ĭameron Payne pushed the pace for the Suns as the replacement for Paul in the starting lineup and managed to hold down turnovers with only one in the game, as Phoenix stormed to a 67-52 lead at intermission. We’re going to need that moving forward.” Landry came in and gave us some great minutes, and T.J. “Ross coming in and just shooting those shots, Jock came in with six points and nine rebounds with incredible minutes for us. Warren was 2-for-4 in the fourth quarter for five points, including a 23-footer with 2:23 remaining that gave the Suns an eight-point lead (112-104). Phoenix’s reserves outscored the Denver backups 22-20, and Warren led the way with seven points, followed by Jock Landale (six), Ross (five) and Landry Shamet (four). Warren and Terrence Ross for more scoring punch off the bench. So, the outcome of Game 3 came as a pleasant surprise for the home team, in part because of coach Monty Williams’s decision to utilize veterans T.J. The Phoenix big four of Durant, Booker, Paul, and Deandre Ayton combined to score a whopping 85.7% of the Suns’ points over the first two games of this series, with the supporting cast chipping in a total of 32 points over that span. Here are five takeaways from Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals, which resumes Sunday with Game 4 ( 8 ET, TNT) at the Footprint Center: Our defense on Devin Booker was unacceptable.” They put the team on their back, had great, great nights. Their two best players did what they were supposed to do. There is a reason everybody is picking this team to come out of the Western Conference. “We didn’t think we were going to beat the Phoenix Suns four times in a row. “Our guys understood this wasn’t going to be a sweep,” Malone said of a Phoenix team that started the fourth quarter up two points, having ended the third frame on a 5-0 run that it would extend to 14-0. NBA teams now own a record of 54-12 all-time when one player scores 40 points or more, and another chips in 30-plus points in the same game. Who knows what they will do to guard him in the next game? But we want him to stay aggressive.”ĭurant managed to do as much, too, in finishing with 39 points despite a shaky shooting night (12-for-31 from the field) by supplementing his total with a 14-for-16 performance from the free-throw line. He is one of the guys that just ignites us from the first possession. We’ve got to continue to keep feeding the hot hand. “I don’t understand why this is such a surprise to everybody,” Durant said. Booker now leads the NBA in the playoffs with six 30-point outings and a trio of 40-point nights, averaging a league-best 36.9 points in the postseason. The showing marked the third time Booker matched his postseason career high in scoring, while notching the 26-year-old’s franchise-best seventh career playoff game with 40 points or more. With veteran floor general Chris Paul (strained left groin) out of action for the first time this series, Booker and Durant combined for 86 points, ensuring that for just the second time in NBA history (regular season and playoffs combined) a team ended a game with two players racking up 39 points or more and eight-plus assists, a feat last accomplished in 1983 during a 186-184 track meet featuring the Pistons and Nuggets.īooker scored a game-high 47 points on 20-for-25 shooting, while dishing nine dimes, pulling down six rebounds and netting three steals. On the other side awaited a blistering performance from two of the league’s most prolific scorers in Devin Booker and Kevin Durant, who combined for 48 points in the first half, the most by a Suns duo in that span over the last 25 postseasons. “Things have gone really, really smooth.”Ĭontinuing with that thought, Malone tapped a table twice to emphasize the point. “We’ve had no adversity in the postseason yet,” he said. So, naturally intuition kicked in for Michael Malone before tipoff Friday of Denver’s 121-114 loss at Phoenix in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals. PHOENIX – It all seemed too easy up to this juncture.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |