Suns defeat Blazers for 4th straight - Move Above .500
The Suns trounced a very young Portland Trailblazers team last night to win their 4th straight game and move above .500 for the first time this year. The win also gets Phoenix out of last place in the Pacific Division; of course that spot is now occupied by the disappointing L.A. Clippers.
Raja Bell led the Suns with 30 points (1 off his career high) while making 7 3's. Amare Stoudemire added 20 pts and 11 rebounds for the Suns. Leandro Barbosa didn't play in the game, due to an injury.
The game really wasn't close and the Suns didn't not falter down the stretch like they were to open the season. They led almost the whole game (except maybe the 1st quarter) and pretty much embarrassed the youthful Trailblazers.
Things are looking up for Phoenix right now and they're poised to jump up the standings even more with Golden State's Baron Davis out and the Clippers struggling so much. Their only problem is going to be the L.A. Lakers, who are opening up an 8-game home stand at Staples Center. While the Lakers start is very surprising, it's weighed by their early homecourt success (8-1 or 9-1). Assuming they continue to play well at home, they'll have quite a few games on the road coming up (for a long time), so expect to see them drop in the rankings by late December.