In a game that got tight towards the end, Markieff Morris and the Phoenix Suns (6-5) were able to gut out a road win against the Boston Celtics (3-6) 118-114. Defense was certainly not the emphasis in the game, as both teams shot over 50 percent from the field, over 40 percent from three, and both teams scored 66 points in the paint. Phoenix was coming off two straight losses, giving up a season high in points (120), third quarter points (42), field goal percentage (52.9), 3-pointers (14 of 20), and free throws (34), to the Los Angeles Clippers Saturday night. The Suns have allowed opponents to shoot 45.6 percent from three in the last four games. The Celtics, who blew a 19 point lead against the Cavaliers while giving up 38 fourth quarter points, were trying to avoid their third straight loss at home. The Celtics, who are ranked near the bottom of the NBA in points allowed (108.4), field goal percentage against (47.9), and 3-point percentage against (39.9), were just the opponent the Suns needed to get back into the win column.
The Suns got off to another fast start, pulling ahead by 13 points with 4:34 left in the first. Gerald Green hit a 3-pointer from the baseline, and followed that up shortly with a fast break two-handed alley-oop dunk to finish a 9-0 run. The Suns then missed their next 7 shots, and within 4 minutes the score was tied at 31-31. Alex Len, who is getting more playing time as of late, got an offensive board and made a tip shot with 7.3 seconds to go in the quarter to give the Suns a 33-31 lead heading into the second period. Len would follow up his 17 point performance against the Clippers on Saturday with a career high 19 point (8 of 10), 7 rebound performance against Boston.
The second quarter saw the game remain close through the first seven minutes. Goran Dragic led the Suns by scoring 10 points in the period, including 2 of 3 from beyond the arc. Dragic would play a complete game, recording 22 points, 7 assists, and 6 rebounds before the night was over. The Suns slowly pulled away by 9 when Len nailed a mid-range jumper at 1:50 before halftime. Tyler Zeller, who finished the game with 19 points (8 of 9) and 7 rebounds off the bench, scored 4 points for Boston in the final 1:03 to cut the score to 60-54, as the Suns missed their last 4 of 5 shots to finish the half.
The Suns scored 11 of the first 14 points in the third period, and took their largest lead of the night at 71-57 when Marcus Morris hit a wide open 3-pointer from the baseline. Still trailing 75-65 at 6:37 in the third, the Celtics would go on an 11-2 run that was topped off when Jeff Green sank an 8-foot turnaround jumper bringing the Celtics back to within one. Green would score 10 in the quarter, and lead the Celtics as their top scorer with 28 points in the game. The Celtics could not take over the lead, but after Tyler Zeller finished a driving dunk with 2.4 seconds left in the third, the Celtics trailed 89-88 heading into the final period.
Neither team led by more than 5 points the entire fourth period, making it anybody’s game to win in the end. After tying the game three times, the Celtics took a 103-102 lead, their first lead since 9:38 in the second quarter, when Green hit a 4-foot bank shot after driving to the basket. Green would put the Celtics on his back and score 9 of the next 13 points for Boston, as the lead changed hands 6 times in just over three minutes. After Green stole the ball and took it the length of the court for a one-handed dunk over Marcus Morris, it looked like the Suns had squandered away another game. Green, who was fouled on the dunk, would convert the three-point play and give the Celtics a 114-112 lead with 57.3 seconds left. Goran Dragic tied the score at 114-114 on a left-handed layup, and then Eric Bledsoe made an open court steal for a breakaway dunk with 29.5 seconds to go, giving the Suns a 2 point lead. Green attempted a 3-pointer to give Boston the lead with just over 20 seconds to go, but the shot rolled in and out, and Len pulled down the rebound for the Suns to secure the win.
The Suns ended up outscoring the Celtics in an exciting game that saw very little defense. Rajon Rondo would fall just short of a triple-double, recording 14 points, 10 rebounds and 9 assists. T.J. Warren, fresh off his two-game stint with the Bakersfield Jam of the NBA D-League, would score the first 4 points of the fourth quarter, and later sink a 3-pointer on his way to scoring 7 points. Markieff Morris scored at least 6 points in each quarter of the game, on his way to scoring a career high 30 points. He added 7 rebounds, 5 assists, and 4 steals to his stats, making critical shots to help the Suns come out on top. The Suns have now beaten the Celtics three straight, and are back in the win column after losing their last two. They continue their season-long six game road trip, with game three on Wednesday, November 19 against the Detroit Pistons (3-8).