Nets rally past Suns
NEW YORK -- Brook Lopez scored 12 of his 19 points in the third quarter as the Brooklyn Nets rallied from an early 15-point deficit and pulled away for a 126-98 rout of the Phoenix Suns on Thursday night.
Lopez did not top 20 points for the seventh straight game since he sat out the fourth quarter. His showing helped the Nets win consecutive games for the first time since home wins over the Cleveland Cavaliers and Indiana Pacers March 24-26, 2016.
Reserve KJ McDaniels added a season-high 16 points and Jeremy Lin added 13 after sitting Tuesday's win over the Detroit Pistons with a sprained right ankle. Trevor Booker contributed 14 while Quincy Acy chipped in 12 as the Nets outscored the Suns 111-68 in the final 38:08 and received a season-high 81 points from reserves.
Devin Booker scored 28 points but shot 9-of-26 for the Suns, who dressed nine players and lost their sixth straight game as Eric Bledsoe, Brandon Knight and Tyson Chandler were held out to rest. Rookie Marquese Chriss added 23 for Phoenix, which shot 36.5 percent.
The Suns (22-50) reached 50 losses in consecutive seasons for the second time in franchise history. The other instance occurred in the 1973-74 and 1974-75 campaigns under coach John McLeod.
Phoenix also is 1-8 since beating the Boston Celtics on March 5 and 2-10 in its last 12 road games since Jan. 22.
The Nets began rallying early in the second quarter and took a 52-50 lead at halftime. The Nets never trailed after Lopez triggered a 9-0 run with a dunk that made it 59-57 with 8:34 left in the third quarter.
Brooklyn began pulling away in the final four minutes of the third. It held the Suns scoreless for nearly 3 1/2 minutes while ripping off a 12-0 run and by the end of the third the lead was 84-65.
NOTES: Phoenix rookie C Dragan Bender (right ankle surgery) is shooting and jogging and coach Earl Watson hopes he will return before the season ends. ... Nets G Archie Goodwin played the third game of his 10-day contract and it came against the team he appeared in 150 games for in the previous three seasons. Goodwin scored 12 points while playing seven minutes. ... Phoenix F T.J. Warren (left foot contusion) missed the game after being listed as questionable. ... Brooklyn G Joe Harris (sprained left shoulder) missed his 11th straight game while G Sean Kilpatrick (strained left hamstring) sat out his fifth straight game.