Hornets at Suns
The last major sporting event taking place before the Super Bowl kicks off on Sunday will happen in Phoenix, where the Suns will host the Charlotte Hornets. The Hornets are lighting up the scoreboard with wins in their last two games while the Suns are slumping with losses in six of their last seven.
Phoenix appeared to be turning things around when it began the three-game homestand with a 102-88 win over the Dallas Mavericks on Wednesday, but the defense did not carry over to Friday as the Suns were trounced 129-97 by the Utah Jazz. "It's probably the sign of a young basketball team, but it's disappointing to me," interim coach Jay Triano said. "I like to think we make steps and start moving in the right direction and then we take a step back. To me, that's disappointing. I want to be better. And I think our guys want to be better. I think they really care." The Hornets began their offensive surge with a 123-110 win at Atlanta on Wednesday and kept up the pace on Friday, pouring in 49 points in the first quarter and holding on for a 133-126 win over Indiana. "This is the NBA," Charlotte guard Kemba Walker told reporters. "You are not really going to blow teams out, so you know all teams keep on pushing. We just stayed tough, stayed resilient, we stayed within ourselves, and we made the right plays necessary to get this win."
TV: 3 p.m. ET, FS Southeast (Charlotte), FS Arizona (Phoenix)
ABOUT THE HORNETS (22-29): Walker scored 41 points in the win over the Pacers after pouring in 38 at Atlanta. "Offensively, we are playing great," Walker told reporters. "We were moving the basketball and making the extra pass and knocking it down when we needed to. Defensively, I think we can be a lot better, but I think we have been doing a great job, especially when we really need it. We are getting some big-time stops." Shooting guard Nicolas Batum is coming on as well and followed up a triple-double at Atlanta with 31 points and nine rebounds against Indiana.
ABOUT THE SUNS (18-35): One positive coming out of Friday's loss was the continued strong play of rookie small forward Josh Jackson, who scored 20 points to reach that mark for the third straight games -- the best stretch of his young career. "Tonight was just one of those nights where we didn't come with enough energy," Jackson told the Arizona Republic. "We know what we have to do. We know it's there, but our thing is just being more consistent, coming ready to play every day, coming with energy and we just don't do it every day." Another young Phoenix player is not having such a strong run, and power forward Marquese Chriss, 20, is expected to serve a team-imposed one-game suspension on Sunday for reportedly getting into a verbal confrontation with an assistant coach.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Suns SG Devin Booker broke the franchise record for consecutive made free throws in a season when he reached 60 on Friday, surpassing the previous mark of 57 shared by Kevin Johnson and Mike Bratz.
2. Charlotte PF Marvin Williams (ankle) missed the last two games and is not expected to play on Sunday.
3. The home team took each of the last four in the series, with Phoenix earning a 120-103 triumph on March 2.