At 10:00 a.m. Beijing time on December 30, the NBA regular season is in full swing, and the Suns are at home against the Hornets. The Suns improved their record to 15-15 after beating the Rockets last time out, with a winning percentage of 0.5. Beal's back-to-back injuries have really put a lot of pressure on Durant and Booker, both of whom have been in a slump of late. But Beal finally ushered in a comeback in this game, which is also the second time this season that the Suns' Big Three have come together, and the first time they lost to the Nets. Obviously, the Suns will be aiming for a first win for the Big Three after the last one-third of the regular season.
After the last game of the heavy defeat to the Lakers, the Hornets' record fell to 7-22 and ranked third from the bottom in the East. Although Hayward and Ball continue to be absent in this game, the Hornets will do their best to win a victory after suffering a nine-game losing streak. Rookie Miller also returned to the starting lineup, scoring 17 points in the last game and shooting 60 percent from three-point range. The main offensive points of the Hornets are Miller, Rozier and Bridges, and the Hornets' interior line is not strong, which is also conducive to Nurkic's play. The starting lineups of both sides in this game, the Suns sent Booker, Durant, Nurkic, Allen and Beal. The Hornets use Rozier, Miller, Richards, Bridges, and McGevens.
In the first quarter of the game, the two sides were tense at the beginning and quickly entered a scorching situation. Nurkic scored seven straight points on an empty layup, and Durant scored five straight points on a jumper. Hornets Miller also scored five points on a burst shot, and Rozier scored six points from mid-range. After half a quarter, Miller and Rozier hit two three-pointers in a row, and Nurkic scored six consecutive points to lead the team to equalize. Hornets Miller could add three points, and Martin was on fire. But the Suns hit three three-pointers in a row late in the game to open up the gap, and the first quarter ended with the Suns leading the Hornets by six points at 36-30.
In the second quarter of the game, the Suns backup point guard Lee organized a tandem on the court and achieved results, assisting Beal and Durant in succession. Hornets Smith Jr. hit two three-pointers to stop the Suns with eight straight points, and after the adjustment, Lee continued to play his passing ability, assisted Gordon on a three-point shot, and then broke through to make another foul. Immediately after the Suns were in full bloom on the outside, Booker and Allen hit four three-pointers in a row to stretch the difference to double digits. At halftime, the Suns led the Hornets by 10 points, 68-58.
At halftime, Booker scored 15 points, 2 rebounds and 5 assists on 5-of-7 shooting. Nurkic had 14 points and nine rebounds on 5-of-7 shooting. Durant finished with 11 points, 1 rebound, 6 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocks on 4-of-4 shooting. Allen 10 points. Beal had four points, one rebound and four assists on 2-of-5 shooting. On the Hornets' side, Rozier had 17 points, two rebounds and three assists on 6-of-10 shooting. Miller finished with 17 points, one rebound and one assist on 6-of-10 shooting. Smith Jr. 10 points. Martin had six points and three rebounds.
In the second half of the game, Booker continued the offensive state of the first half, and continued to kill the paint area, extending the advantage to 14 points to stop the Hornets. After coming back, Booker continued to expand the advantage with two consecutive three-pointers, and Nurkic scored eight points in a row in the first quarter on 4-of-4 shooting, and the Suns once extended their lead to 20 points. But at the end of the period, Booker's hand declined, and he failed to shoot two consecutive three-point attempts, and the Hornets Washington hit a solid three-point shot from the outside, scoring 7 points in a row to lead the team to chase the score. Fortunately, Gordon hit two three-pointers in a row to stabilize the situation in time, and the third quarter ended with the Suns leading the Hornets by 14 points, 103-89.
In the final quarter of the game, Durant scored 5 points in a row from the outside. Hornets Rozier and Bridges also colored on the outside, and Rozier was powerful on the offensive end, hitting another three-pointer from the outside to score 12 points in a row. Miller and Washington also hit two three-pointers in a row to continue the firepower, and the difference was further narrowed. It was the veteran Gordon who stepped up and hit two three-pointers in a row, and Booker grabbed the last four free throws to close the game. In the end, the Suns won 133-119 against the Hornets!
In the game, Durant scored 21 points, 4 rebounds, 11 assists, 1 steal and 3 blocks on 8-of-11 shooting. Booker finished with 35 points, four rebounds and seven assists on 10-of-18 shooting. Beal finished with six points, three rebounds and seven assists on 3-of-8 shooting. Nurkic had 24 points and 15 rebounds. Allen had 16 points, 4 rebounds and 3 assists. For the Hornets, Rozier finished with 42 points, four rebounds and eight assists on 14-of-22 shooting. Miller finished with 20 points, 1 rebound, 3 assists, 1 steal and 1 block on 7-of-16 shooting. Bridges had 11 points, 7 rebounds and 6 assists. It's really not easy for the Suns to beat the Hornets, and both the Hornets and the Suns are very hot on the outside shooting. The Suns shot 60 percent from the field and the Hornets 51 percent. The only thing the Hornets can't compete with is the inside, and Nurkic dunks again and again keep the Hornets at bay. Gordon off the bench with 21 points and Lee's three assists helped the Suns become fluid on the offensive end.