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Thursday, Mar. 2 9:00pm ET
Robinson's 22 points leads Suns | |||||
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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
PHOENIX (AP) -- While the Indiana Pacers usually win at home and struggle on the road, this wasn't a struggle. This was a collapse. Cliff Robinson scored 22 points and Jason Kidd matched his season high with 15 assists Thursday night as the Phoenix Suns emphatically ended Indiana's five-game winning streak 118-87.
"This is the worst that we've been beaten in the three years I've been here," Indiana coach Larry Bird said. "We've had a lot of bad games, but not this bad." Even Phoenix coach Scott Skiles thought the Pacers' poor play was a significant reason the Suns won. "Not to take anything away from our guys, but I didn't feel like the Pacers were as sharp as they have been," Skiles said. Kidd narrowly missed a triple-double with nine rebounds and eight points. Kidd's backup, Randy Livingston, added a career-high 16 points. Tom Gugliotta scored 19, Penny Hardaway 15 and Shawn Marion 14 for the Suns, who won their ninth in a row at home. "It was probably one of our best games overall, offensively and defensively," Kidd said. "It was a quality win." Travis Best scored 20, Jalen Rose 19 and Reggie Miller 15 for the Pacers, who hadn't lost by more than 14 all season. Phoenix outscored Indiana on fastbreak points 21-0 and in the paint 46-18. "That's the thing that coach Skiles emphasized," Hardaway said, "just push it back at them because they aren't a good transition team." The Suns and Pacers were two of the NBA's hottest teams entering the game. Phoenix won for the 10th time in 12 games. The Central Division-leading Pacers, who play the Lakers in Los Angeles on Friday night, had won nine of 10 and 13 of 15 entering the contest, but never led against the Suns. The teams mirror each other's records at home and on the road. Phoenix is 24-5 at home and 12-16 on the road. Indiana is 26-2 at home and 13-16 on the road. "We're a great team at home and a sub-par team on the road," Rose said. Phoenix outscored Indiana 11-3 in the last 2½ minutes of the first half to take a 55-45 lead at the break. Livingston capped the run by chasing down a rebound and sinking a high-arching 18-footer from the baseline at the buzzer. A 6-0 spurt to start the second half put the Suns up 61-45 on Hardaway's fastbreak layup on a long pass from Kidd. Indiana never was closer than 14 again. The Suns led 84-66 entering the final quarter. The Suns, back after a 2-2 road trip in which they lost games to New York in Toronto after leading in the fourth quarter, were up by as many as 13 in the first quarter, but Indiana made four consecutive 3-pointers in a 14-4 surge that pulled the Pacers within one at 33-32. Phoenix regained control with a 6-0 spurt capped by Marion's dunk on an offensive rebound. "Our starters played really bad," Bird said. "Our second unit came in and did a good job." Game notesIndiana made five of six 3-pointers in the second quarter. ... Among those at the game were four San Francisco 49ers players -- Jerry Rice, Steve Young, J.J. Stokes and Terrell Owens, along with Alex Rodriguez of the Seattle Mariners. ... Miller drew a technical for throwing a towel onto the court after being called for his second foul with 1:13 left in the third quarter. ... Bird and Skiles are two of the most famous high school players from Indiana. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Indiana Clubhouse Phoenix Clubhouse RECAPS Philadelphia 87 Washington 84
Phoenix 118
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