THE Phoenix Suns look to stay above the Western Conference play-in line when they visit the San Antonio Spurs Monday in the second of two games in three nights between the teams.
The Suns (42-29) easily won the first game of the set 131-106 on Saturday as Devin Booker (32 points) and Kevin Durant (25) combined for 57 points in just three quarters.
Phoenix led by as many as 32 points while winning its third straight game and moving into sixth place in the Western Conference.
Bradley Beal added 13 points and 12 assists for the Suns. Bol Bol scored 13 points, Eric Gordon 12 and Drew Eubanks 10 and Jusuf Nurkic grabbed 10 rebounds.
“It’s great – that’s what you want when you get out to an early lead, to keep your foot on the gas, play the third quarter like we did, go for a knockout,” said the Phoenix coach Frank Vogel. “We just played a really solid 48 minutes.”
The Suns outscored the Spurs 38-24 in the third.
The Suns can ill afford to take San Antonio lightly, as they have the toughest remaining schedule in the West based on their opponents’ winning percentage. After Monday, Phoenix will face 10 straight playoff teams.
The Suns had a season-best 13 games above .500.
“This is what we’ve been working for all season,” Booker said. “I think the timing is right. This is the crux of the season, and it’s time to get ready and get ready for the playoffs.”
Meanwhile, the Spurs (15-56) continue to stumble toward the finish line. Their loss Saturday to Phoenix was their third in a row and sixth in their last seven games.
Keldon Johnson led San Antonio with 14 points while Victor Wembanyama had 13, Blake Wesley 12, Zach Collins and Sandro Mamukelashvili 11 each and Tre Jones 10.
“They did their best,” Spurs coach Gregg Popovich said. “We had a little more contact and physicality in the second half, but you’re not going to stop (Booker) and (Durant) from doing what they do, and (Beal) is healthy now.
“It’s a pretty tough line. Our guys did everything they could and you move on.”
San Antonio, the last team in the West and already eliminated from the playoffs, is 1-6 entering its season-high eight-game homestand.
The Spurs need to win six of their final 11 games to avoid matching the franchise’s all-time worst record of 20-62, set in 1996-97. Eight of San Antonio’s remaining games will be against teams in playoff contention.
“We just have to take better care of the ball as a team,” Johnson said. “We’re capable of doing it, and we’ve shown it this year. We just need to get more consistent.”
–Field level media
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