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RECAP
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BOX SCORE
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 GAME FLOW
EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) -- Stephon Marbury outplayed Jason Kidd in a matchup of top point guards, but Kidd's team won the game.
Penny Hardaway scored 25 points as the Phoenix Suns won their
fourth straight game, 104-89 over the New Jersey Nets on Wednesday
night.
|  | | Stephon Marbury scored 27 points, but the Suns made it tough for the guard and his Nets teammates. |
Marbury outscored Kidd 27-15 and had one more assist (5-4) than
the Phoenix guard in their first meeting of the season. Marbury
also did some trash-talking, according to Hardaway.
"At the end of the game, he said my game was garbage,"
Hardaway said. "He was doing all the talking. It's all
frustration."
Kidd said winning the game was more important to him than
winning the statistical battle with Marbury.
"As a point guard you have to get your teammates involved,"
Kidd said. "Sometimes you have to step up and shoot, but the
bottom line is that this is a team game and it doesn't matter what
you say or how many points you score. It's who ends up winning
that's important."
Phoenix hasn't lost since dropping its season opener at Denver.
The Nets fell to 1-4.
Tom Gugliotta scored 18 points for the Suns, while Johnny Newman
had 26 for the Nets.
The Suns built a 33-16 lead after a first quarter in which they
held the Nets to 31 percent shooting, outrebounded New Jersey 14-8,
had four steals and blocked four shots.
It was never close after Phoenix used an 18-4 run to take a
27-12 lead. Hardaway led the charge with seven points, while Luc
Longley and Shawn Marion each added four.
The Suns led by as many as 24 points in the second period before
taking a 56-36 lead into the break. The Nets were booed by their
home fans after the Suns opened the second half with an 8-2 spurt.
New Jersey closed to 89-77 in the fourth quarter on a tip-in by
Jim McIlvaine, but never posed a serious threat.
Game notes
The Suns and Nets did not play each other last year in the
lockout-shortened season. ... The Nets ended a three-game
homestand. They will play seven of their next nine on the road. ...
The Suns played their second game in as many nights and second of a
four-game road trip.
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ALSO SEE
NBA Scoreboard
Phoenix Clubhouse
New Jersey Clubhouse
RECAPS
Detroit 110
Boston 92
Seattle 109
Washington 95
Charlotte 117
Milwaukee 111
Phoenix 104
New Jersey 89
Orlando 110
Philadelphia 105
LA Lakers 89
Houston 88
Vancouver 102
Atlanta 97
San Antonio 99
LA Clippers 94
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