Suns Fold and Give Up a 17-Point Lead Against the Pacers
The Phoenix Suns’ winning run came to an end on Friday night as they fell short of the Indiana Pacers, 133-131. Devin Booker led the Suns with his second-best scoring performance of all time (he scored 62 points), only topped by his 70-point performance against the Boston Celtics in 2017.
Early on, Booker showed off his skills, setting a franchise record with 29 points in the first quarter to help the Suns take a 40-31 lead into the second. In the first quarter, Phoenix gave up the ball five times, which gave Indiana room to maneuver.
The Suns led by ten points throughout the most of the second quarter and went into the locker room up 59-46. Even though Indiana had 11 offensive rebounds compared to the Suns’ two, Phoenix shot 71% in the first half.
In the third, the Pacers persisted and gradually reduced Phoenix’s lead with better play in the paint. Indiana closed the gap to one possession at the end of the third quarter, but they were still behind, 114-105. More information about Bradley Beal’s temporary absence from action due to a face injury can be found here.
Throughout the fourth quarter, Indiana and Phoenix exchanged baskets, with the Pacers ultimately matching the score with one minute remaining. Obi Toppin grabbed a rebound and put a jumper back up with 3.4 seconds remaining to give Indiana a 133-131 lead.
As the buzzer went off, Booker missed the game-winning shot, officially ending Phoenix’s winning streak.