The Phoenix Suns hope to rebound from just their second
loss of the season when they host the Toronto Raptors Sunday night at US
Airways Center.
Phoenix fell to 8-2 on the 2009-10 campaign following Thursday's 121-102 loss
to the Pacific Division-rival Los Angeles Lakers at Staples Center. Jared
Dudley led the Suns with 14 points and All-Star Steve Nash finished with 13
points and five assists in defeat.
Amare Stoudemire shot a dismal 2-for-15 and finished with eight points for
Phoenix, which had a four-game winning streak come to an end.
"It was a tough matchup all around," Suns head coach Alvin Gentry said. "They
took us out of almost everything we tried to do. They're a great basketball
team. We fought to the end. It was a loss, but there were some positives that
came out of it."
The Suns, who own a 3-0 mark at home, are now just a half game ahead of the
rival Lakers in the division standings.
Toronto, meanwhile, has won two in a row and will continue a four-game road
trip Sunday in the desert. It kicked off the trek with a 104-89 triumph
against the Los Angeles Clippers, as All-Star Chris Bosh led the charge with
21 points, 14 rebounds and six assists to help the Raptors close out the game
on a convincing run.
Andrea Bargnani netted 19 points and Jose Calderon ended with 18 and nine
assists for the Raptors, who battled back from a 22-point deficit to win for
the fourth time in six contests.
"We played team defense in the second half. We had to contain everybody. We're
a good team but we have to do it from the beginning," said Calderon.
The Raptors will also visit the Nuggets and Jazz on the road swing.
Phoenix has dominated this series to the tune of 10 straight wins and a 14-4
record over the previous 18 meetings with Toronto. The Raptors are also
winless in their past five trips to the Valley of the Sun.
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