It was a much-needed victory for the Suns tonight as they improved to 2-5 on the season.
Phoenix spotted Orlando an early lead, then took the game over with its defense and its shooting. The Suns beat a short-handed Magic team without Paolo Banchero, Jalen Suggs and Jonathan Isaac, 117-104, to improve to 2-5. Phoenix was short Mark Williams, Jordan Goodwin, and Rasheer Fleming.
Orlando outrebounded Phoenix by 15 and got to the line 11 more times, but the Magic turned it over 25 times, and the Suns
hit 17 threes. A 23-point lead after three quarters was more than enough to survive a late Orlando push.
- Devin Booker: 30 points (11-of-22 FG, 4-of-8 3PT, 4-of-4 FT), 8 assists, 3 steals, +16 in 34 minutes
- Dillon Brooks: 24 points (9-of-16 FG, 4-of-6 3PT), 2 steals, +12 in 29 minutes
- Miles Bridges: 18 points (6-of-10 FG, 3-of-6 3PT), 13 rebounds, 5 assists, +12 in 31 minutes
Game Flow
First Half
Orlando came out firing. The Magic got whatever they wanted early and jumped out to a 14-8 lead.
Then the Suns started taking the ball away. Orlando turned it over nine times in the quarter, and Phoenix turned those mistakes into 13 points, mostly in transition. Anthony Black had four of those giveaways by himself.
Devin Booker played all 12 minutes and set the tone with 12 points, hitting a pair of threes and going perfect at the line. The Suns hit five threes as a team to Orlando’s three, which covered for getting outworked on the glass and in the paint.
The bench changed the game. Ryan Dunn, Collin Gillespie and Man Man all finished the quarter on the plus side, and Phoenix pushed the lead to nine before Orlando got the last bucket to cut it to seven entering Q2.
Phoenix led after the first quarter, 33-26.
Luke Kennard owned the second quarter. He came off the bench and went 3-for-3 from deep for 12 points, giving Phoenix a second scorer while Orlando keyed in on Booker.
Booker kept cooking anyway. He added 11 more in the quarter on efficient shooting and went into the locker room with 23.
Orlando stayed close by crashing the glass and living at the line. The Magic grabbed nine offensive rebounds in the quarter and got to the stripe 14 times, but they missed six of those free throws and couldn’t buy a three. Wendell Carter Jr. did most of the damage inside with 10 in the quarter.
Man Man didn’t score, but he was a team-best +13 in his minutes.
The three-point line is the story. Phoenix hit 10 threes in the half and Orlando hit four. The Magic shot better inside and controlled the boards, but the Suns’ shooting and Orlando’s turnovers built the cushion.
Booker leads all scorers with 23 points on 8-of-13 shooting, including 3-of-4 from three and 4-of-4 at the line. Kennard has 12 off the bench.
Phoenix led at halftime, 63-51.
Second Half
Dillon Brooks took over the third. He scored 12 in the quarter on 5-of-7 shooting, and Miles Bridges added 10 more as the starters blew the game open.
Orlando’s turnover problem came back in a big way. The Magic gave it away 10 times in the quarter, and Phoenix’s defense jumped passing lanes all period with six steals.
Booker only scored three in the quarter, but he didn’t need to. He set up teammates with four assists, and every Suns starter finished the period at +7 or better. Man Man chipped in a pair of buckets off the bench.
After three, Phoenix led 96-73. The Suns outscored Orlando 33-22 in the third quarter.
Orlando kept its starters on the floor and made a push, winning the quarter by 10. Carter didn’t miss in the fourth, going 4-for-4, and the Magic knocked down five threes in the period.
Phoenix rested Booker and most of the starting group for long stretches, and the offense cooled off with five turnovers and three missed free throws in the quarter.
The deep bench closed it out, with Koa Peat, Jamaree Bouyea, Duop Reath and Pat Spencer getting the final minutes. Phoenix won 117-104.
Up Next
Kevin Durant returns to the Valley on Saturday night as the Suns host the Houston Rockets.
