Suns at Trail Blazers
The Trail Blazers are working to clinch a postseason spot while the Phoenix Suns, who visit Portland on Monday, are just trying to stay in the race. The Suns are going to need to come up with more on the offensive end than they managed when they hosted the Trail Blazers last week and shot 36.8 percent from the field in an 87-81 loss. Phoenix compounded that loss by falling to the Oklahoma City Thunder 109-97 on Sunday.
That loss dropped the Suns four games behind the Thunder in the race for the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference with eight contests remaining. Phoenix will have to earn it on the road with six of its next seven away from home, including trips to Golden State, Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans and San Antonio. Portland is holding down the No. 4 spot in the West due to its lead in the Northwest Division but is one game behind the Los Angeles Clippers in the race for homecourt advantage in the opening round.
TV: 10 p.m. ET, NBATV, FSN Arizona (Phoenix), CSN Northwest (Portland)
ABOUT THE SUNS (38-36): Phoenix looked as though it had solved its offensive problems from Friday with a 62-point first half on Sunday but fell off after the break and squandered all of a 20-point second-quarter lead. The Suns totaled 35 points after the break and ended up losing the season series to the Thunder 3-1, leaving themselves without the advantage of a head-to-head tiebreaker. Phoenix got Brandon Knight back from an eight-game absence but the point guard went 1-of-10 from the field in 22 minutes before tweaking his ailing ankle and sitting out the rest of the contest.
ABOUT THE TRAIL BLAZERS (47-25): Portland has won three in a row since a five-game slide and is leaning on LaMarcus Aldridge, who put up 27 points and nine rebounds in Friday’s win in Phoenix. Aldridge followed that up with 32 points and 11 boards in a 120-114 win over Denver on Saturday and is 26-of-46 from the field in the last two games. “He’s playing at a very high level,” Trail Blazers coach Terry Stotts told reporters of Aldridge. “His offense, he’s in a groove. On the heels of (Friday’s) performance in the fourth quarter and then (Saturday), he’s just in a really good place offensively with his shot.”
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Trail Blazers G Arron Afflalo scored 21 points on Saturday after failing to reach double figures in five straight games.
2. Phoenix F Markieff Morris is averaging 20.5 points in the last four games.
3. Portland took the last meeting at home, 108-87 on Feb. 5 behind 19 points and 13 rebounds from Aldridge.