The players who made up the difference in game one didn't show up this time. But their inability to score at in this game was their downfall. Luckily for Portland in game one, the offense didn't suffer, and their defense was able too keep Phoenix off-balance. The absence of Brandon Roy finally began to show. A tightened Phoenix defense, along with several defensive mismatches, proved too much for Portland to overcome. It wasn't that Portland shot incredibly well on Sunday, but they were efficient and had plenty of opportunities to score. Better overall team play from the other three starters gave Phoenix the offensive firepower that they missed in the first game. Stoudemire matched his game one scoring total, but he only took 10 shots in 30 minutes of play. Nash and STAT only needed to score 13 and 18 respectively in this game. The Suns didn't have to depend on Nash and Stoudemire. Aldridge scored 22 in the first game, but was held to 11 tonight after shooting less than 50 percent from the field.
Richardson jump starters free#
Phoenix was able to get to the free throw line 18 times in the first half, which landed Portland forward LaMarcus Aldridge in foul trouble. They were also able to extend their defense to pressure Nicolas Batum and LaMarcus Aldridge, both of whom thrived in game one by making mid-range jumpers that were loosely defended. Hill's size prevented Miller from scoring in the post or pulling up and making jump shots. This led to a 12 point game from Miller, who scored 31 in game one. Instead of matching up Richardson with Andre Miller, he assigned Grant Hill to Miller. Most impressive was the defensive changes that Alvin Gentry made after the first game. The Suns are all about going on long scoring runs, which didn't happen in game one due to Portland's defense and Nate McMillan's usage of timeouts.īut throughout the second and third quarters, Jason Richardson and Grant Hill couldn't miss. Several Phoenix players just got hot at the right time. They never let up the offensive pressure, scoring over 31 points in each of the first three quarters. Amar'e Stoudemire played more aggressively than in game one and didn't settle for jump shots. Portland's defensive pressure was rather relaxed, and let the Suns score quickly and often. Suns starters were able to sit out for most of the final quarter, and get some much needed rest. The game was easily won the Suns who closed out the match sometime in the third quarter. Steve Nash only scored 13, but dished out an impressive 16 assists. Grant Hill added 20 points after a seemingly absent game one, and only missed one field goal in the game. Jason Richardson, who scored only 14 in game one, played like a man possessed scoring 29 points on 11-of-16 shooting. We witnessed the Suns shoot poorly in game one, but tonight they made 52 percent of their field goal attempts.
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