Disappointing for two months and plagued by controversies concerning the hierarchy of its roster, Phoenix has just scored a second victory in a row. After Atlanta on Thursday evening, it was Utah who came to bite the dust in Arizona, but not without fighting.
Deprived of Jordan Clarkson, Keyonte George and John Collins, the Jazzmen did not lead in the score for a single second. After the remarkable start of Mason Plumlee, still established to the detriment of Jusuf Nurkic, it is Devin Booker who quickly took charge by scoring 7 points in a row (12-2).
With energy, Lauri Markkanen and Walker Kessler managed to start Utah before seeing Svi Mykhailiuk and Cody Williams fire from afar to restart the match (26-25).
Jazz hangs on
The locals regained their ease following a 10-3 initiated by Devin Booker at 3-points and concluded by Bradley Beal, sixth luxury man, still from a distance (41-34), then a 9-0 with Devin Booker again at departure and Kevin Durant this time at the finish to offer the biggest gap of the match to the Suns (54-38).
The rest was a little harder since the Jazz managed to stay alive, notably thanks to Collin Sexton's 9 points at the end of the second quarter to accompany the Markkanen-Kessler duo (65-54). The third act was also indecisive, this time with Isaiah Collier as reinforcement to keep Utah in the game, between his five points in a row and his alley-oop for Lauri Markkanen to bring Salt Lake City to -4 (72-68).
Kevin Durant and Devin Booker then took their responsibilities from afar, but Utah held on until the start of the fourth quarter, when Grayson Allen's 3/3 from afar definitely loosened the grip, imploding for good the opposing defense (100-88). Devin Booker's dunk in the process had the merit of offering the Suns a pressure-free end to the match. A final 3-pointer from Devin Booker, MVP of the match, followed by a 2+1 from KD then definitively ended the suspense, Phoenix winning 114-106 in addition to avoiding another evening of crisis…
WHAT TO REMEMBER
– Grayson Allen does it again. By relegating Bradley Beal to the bench and Jusuf Nurkic to the end of his rotation, Mike Budenholzer is seeking to create an electric shock within his group which has continued to look for itself for two months. The first two lieutenants of the Booker-Durant tandem must move, and the rest of the squad with it. For the moment, there is a player who has understood the context well, taking the opportunity to stand out from the game. Already decisive against Atlanta two days earlier with his best match of the season (23 points), Grayson Allen has was again valuable, this time by responding when his team needed it most. While the Jazz came back dangerously to -3 (91-88), the back split a 3/3 3-pointer which freed everyone.
– Objective Charlotte. In difficulty since mid-November, the Suns have no longer managed to string together three victories in a row, stopping at two consecutive successes on two occasions. Facing the Hornets this evening, the team against which Phoenix dived on Tuesday, the objective will therefore be to get this “treble” after Atlanta and Utah, for the morale of the troops before a five-game road trip, but also on an accounting level in order to find a balanced balance sheet.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
