NBA: Suns dominate 4th quarter to dispatch Jazz
Devin Booker #1 of the Phoenix Suns shoots over Ochai Agbaji #30 of the Utah Jazz during the first half at Vivint Arena on March 27, 2023 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Alex Goodlett/Getty Images/AFP
Devin Booker scored 24 points and the Phoenix Suns dominated the fourth quarter to finish off a 117-103 victory over the Utah Jazz in Salt Lake City on Monday night.
Deandre Ayton added 14 points with eight rebounds, Chris Paul dished out 10 assists with nine points and three reserves scored in double figures — Terrence Ross (13 points), Cameron Payne (12) and Bismack Biyombo (11) — to help the Suns (40-35) keep momentum from a win over Philadelphia on Saturday.
Article continues after this advertisementThe Jazz (35-40), paced by Lauri Markkanen’s 25 points and nine rebounds, erased a double-digit deficit and even took a lead late in the third quarter before falling apart in the fourth en route to their fourth loss in a row.
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) March 28, 2023
Utah was outscored 33-22 in the final 12 minutes at home after playing well in the middle quarters to turn the game competitive.
Article continues after this advertisementWalker Kessler contributed 18 points, eight rebounds and seven blocks, Kelly Olynyk had 10 points, seven rebounds and seven assists and Talen Horton-Tucker totaled 16 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in the loss.
Phoenix dominated the first quarter, going up by double digits after a 9-2 run and then taking a 37-26 lead into the second.
The Jazz used a 17-3 spurt to momentarily surpass the Suns late in the second quarter after a Horton-Tucker layup.
Phoenix bounced back to seize a 57-52 lead by halftime.
Utah briefly caught up to the Suns in the third quarter after Ochai Agbaji drained consecutive 3-pointers during a 10-0 run. The Jazz were up by three before Phoenix closed out the quarter by scoring six straight points for an 84-81 lead heading into the fourth.
Ross hit two jumpers and Payne drained three free throws as the Suns scored seven unanswered points to open the final stanza and reclaim their double-digit lead.
The Suns’ bench outscored Utah’s reserves 57-25 to help Phoenix overcome poor shooting marks from the field (42.6 percent) and from beyond the arc (30.6 percent).
