Kevin Durant scores 26 points as the Suns easily handle the Jazz 126-104
PHOENIX (AP) Grayson Allen cut into the lane before rising up and flushing an unexpected one-handed jam in traffic, pushing the Phoenix lead to 30 points midway through the third quarter.
Two-thirds of the Suns' star trio was out with injuries on Saturday night, but the supporting cast showed it can put up some numbers, too.
Kevin Durant scored 26 points, Eric Gordon added 21 and the Suns easily handled the Utah Jazz 126-104.
“Tonight was one of those nights that we moved in the right direction,” Durant said.
The Suns dominated the majority of the game, never trailing after the first few minutes. They opened a 16-point lead by halftime and led by 30 midway through the third quarter after Allen brought the crowd to its feet with his jam.
Phoenix's star trio was a solo act on Saturday, and Durant provided a methodical 8-of-11 shooting performance. The 13-time All-Star hit all nine of his free throws and dished seven assists. Devin Booker (ankle) missed his second straight game and Bradley Beal (back) has missed all three games this season.
Durant played just 29 minutes, watching from the bench as the Suns enjoyed their comfortable lead.
First-year Suns coach Frank Vogel said he's pleased that the team is also executing on the defensive end of the floor. Utah shot just 44% from the field.
“They're executing our scheme at a pretty high level, and they're doing it with a great deal of effort, hustle and scrappiness, which is what we're asking them to do," Vogel said. “We know we have elite talent on this basketball team, and if the effort piece is greater than our opponent, we're going to be really tough to beat."
Allen added 17 points, while Jusuf Nurkic had 10 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Phoenix poured in 40 points in the third quarter to put away the game.
“Grayson got it going in the third, and we were able to move off of one another,” Durant said. “That's what basketball is all about. It's an exciting win and hopefully we can build on this.”
The Jazz had 19 turnovers in a sloppy performance. Lauri Markkanen had 19 points, making five 3-pointers. Collin Sexton scored 14 points over the bench while rookie Keyonte George, the 16th overall pick out of Baylor, added 12 points, seven rebounds and six assists.
“I think there were moments when our bodies were a little slow,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “We weren’t able to make up for that because we did not do a good enough job with our brains and our mouth communicating.”
Phoenix took a 66-50 lead at halftime after shooting 54% from the field. Gordon scored 21 points in the first half on 9-of-12 shooting, including 3 of 6 from 3-point range. Durant added 14 points and five assists.
UP NEXT
Jazz: Travel to face Denver on Monday.
Suns: Host San Antonio on Tuesday.
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| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 |  | Walker Kessler vs. Jusuf Nurkic (Talen Horton-Tucker gains possession) | ||
| 11:45 |  | Lauri Markkanen misses two point jump shot | ||
| 11:40 | | Josh Okogie defensive rebound | ||
| 11:21 | | Jusuf Nurkic misses two point hook shot | ||
| 11:19 | | John Collins defensive rebound | ||
| 11:06 | | Talen Horton-Tucker misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 11:04 | | John Collins offensive rebound | ||
| 11:02 | | +2 | John Collins makes two point tip layup | 2-0 |
| 10:42 | | Eric Gordon misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:39 | | Lauri Markkanen defensive rebound | ||
| 10:19 | | +2 | John Collins makes two point cutting layup (Jordan Clarkson assists) | 4-0 |
| 10:04 | | +3 | Eric Gordon makes three point jump shot (Kevin Durant assists) | 4-3 |
| 9:48 | | Jordan Clarkson turnover (bad pass) (Kevin Durant steals) | ||
| 9:46 | | Jordan Clarkson shooting foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) | ||
| 9:46 | | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 4-4 |
| 9:46 | | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 4-5 |
| 9:34 | | Walker Kessler offensive foul (Grayson Allen draws the foul) | ||
| 9:34 | | Walker Kessler turnover (offensive foul) | ||
| 9:21 | | +3 | Grayson Allen makes three point jump shot (Kevin Durant assists) | 4-8 |
| 8:58 | | John Collins turnover (lost ball) (Eric Gordon steals) | ||
| 8:56 | | Talen Horton-Tucker shooting foul (Josh Okogie draws the foul) | ||
| 8:56 | | +1 | Josh Okogie makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 4-9 |
| 8:56 | | +1 | Josh Okogie makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 4-10 |
| 8:47 | | +3 | Lauri Markkanen makes three point jump shot (Talen Horton-Tucker assists) | 7-10 |
| 8:32 | | +2 | Eric Gordon makes two point floating jump shot | 7-12 |
| 8:10 | | Talen Horton-Tucker misses two point driving layup | ||
| 8:09 | | Grayson Allen defensive rebound | ||
| 8:07 | | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point running dunk (Grayson Allen assists) | 7-14 |
| 8:07 | | Jazz 60 second timeout | ||
| 7:45 | | Talen Horton-Tucker misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 7:40 | | Kevin Durant defensive rebound | ||
| 7:26 | | +2 | Eric Gordon makes two point cutting layup (Jusuf Nurkic assists) | 7-16 |
| 7:13 | | Jordan Clarkson turnover (bad pass) (Jusuf Nurkic steals) | ||
| 7:09 | | Kevin Durant misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 7:06 | | Jusuf Nurkic offensive rebound | ||
| 7:04 | | Grayson Allen misses three point jump shot | ||
| 7:04 | | Jordan Clarkson defensive rebound | ||
| 6:56 | | +2 | Jordan Clarkson makes two point driving floating jump shot | 9-16 |
| 6:34 | | Jusuf Nurkic misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:29 | | John Collins defensive rebound | ||
| 6:22 | | Josh Okogie personal foul (John Collins draws the foul) | ||
| 6:11 | | +2 | Jordan Clarkson makes two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot (Kelly Olynyk assists) | 11-16 |
| 5:46 | | +2 | Eric Gordon makes two point driving floating jump shot | 11-18 |
| 5:30 | | +2 | Collin Sexton makes two point cutting layup (John Collins assists) | 13-18 |
| 5:30 | | Jusuf Nurkic shooting foul (Collin Sexton draws the foul) | ||
| 5:30 | | +1 | Collin Sexton makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 14-18 |
| 5:17 | | Kevin Durant turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 5:08 | | +2 | Jordan Clarkson makes two point driving finger roll layup | 16-18 |
| 5:08 | | Suns 60 second timeout | ||
| 4:52 | | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point driving floating jump shot (Drew Eubanks assists) | 16-20 |
| 4:39 | | Jordan Goodwin personal foul (John Collins draws the foul) | ||
| 4:26 | | Jordan Clarkson misses two point driving layup | ||
| 4:25 | | Jordan Clarkson offensive rebound | ||
| 4:25 | | Jordan Clarkson misses two point tip layup | ||
| 4:25 | | Jordan Goodwin defensive rebound | ||
| 4:25 | | Drew Eubanks technical foul | ||
| 4:25 | | +1 | Jordan Clarkson makes technical free throw 1 of 1 | 17-20 |
| 4:13 | | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point fadeaway bank jump shot | 17-22 |
| 4:00 | | +2 | Collin Sexton makes two point driving layup | 19-22 |
| 3:44 | | Collin Sexton shooting foul (Jordan Goodwin draws the foul) | ||
| 3:44 | | +1 | Jordan Goodwin makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 19-23 |
| 3:44 | | +1 | Jordan Goodwin makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 19-24 |
| 3:34 | | Kelly Olynyk turnover (bad pass) (Yuta Watanabe steals) | ||
| 3:22 | | Ochai Agbaji blocks Drew Eubanks's two point cutting dunk | ||
| 3:20 | | Kelly Olynyk defensive rebound | ||
| 3:17 | | Collin Sexton turnover (bad pass) (Nassir Little steals) | ||
| 2:58 | | +3 | Jordan Goodwin makes three point jump shot (Drew Eubanks assists) | 19-27 |
| 2:46 | | Jordan Clarkson turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 2:35 | | Kris Dunn shooting foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) | ||
| 2:35 | | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 19-28 |
| 2:35 | | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 19-29 |
| 2:20 | | Yuta Watanabe blocks Collin Sexton's two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 2:14 | | Yuta Watanabe defensive rebound | ||
| 1:57 | | +2 | Drew Eubanks makes two point reverse layup | 19-31 |
| 1:39 | | Kevin Durant blocks Ochai Agbaji's three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 1:37 | | Nassir Little defensive rebound | ||
| 1:27 | | Nassir Little misses three point jump shot | ||
| 1:23 | | Drew Eubanks offensive rebound | ||
| 1:19 | | Yuta Watanabe misses two point driving layup | ||
| 1:16 | | Collin Sexton defensive rebound | ||
| 1:09 | | +2 | Collin Sexton makes two point driving dunk | 21-31 |
| 0:51 | | +3 | Jordan Goodwin makes three point jump shot (Kevin Durant assists) | 21-34 |
| 0:46 | | +3 | Lauri Markkanen makes three point jump shot (Collin Sexton assists) | 24-34 |
| 0:34 | | +3 | Yuta Watanabe makes three point jump shot (Jordan Goodwin assists) | 24-37 |
| 0:10 | | +3 | Lauri Markkanen makes three point stepback jump shot (Collin Sexton assists) | 27-37 |
| 0:00 | | Jordan Goodwin misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:00 | | Suns offensive rebound | ||
| 0:00 | | End of period |
| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:50 | | Jusuf Nurkic offensive foul (Keyonte George draws the foul) | ||
| 11:50 | | Jusuf Nurkic turnover (offensive foul) | ||
| 11:33 | | +3 | Lauri Markkanen makes three point jump shot (Walker Kessler assists) | 30-37 |
| 11:13 | | Lauri Markkanen blocks Jusuf Nurkic's two point driving layup | ||
| 11:10 | | Lauri Markkanen defensive rebound | ||
| 11:04 | | Keyonte George misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 11:00 | | Jusuf Nurkic defensive rebound | ||
| 10:56 | | Lauri Markkanen blocks Jordan Goodwin's two point running layup | ||
| 10:53 | | Keyonte George defensive rebound | ||
| 10:50 | | +2 | Keyonte George makes two point running layup | 32-37 |
| 10:50 | | Suns 60 second timeout | ||
| 10:29 | | Yuta Watanabe misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:24 | | Keyonte George defensive rebound | ||
| 10:09 | | Kris Dunn misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:05 | | Eric Gordon defensive rebound | ||
| 10:01 | | +3 | Eric Gordon makes three point running pullup jump shot | 32-40 |
| 9:35 | | +2 | Walker Kessler makes two point cutting dunk (Keyonte George assists) | 34-40 |
| 9:20 | | Jusuf Nurkic misses two point hook shot | ||
| 9:18 | | Yuta Watanabe offensive rebound | ||
| 9:17 | | Nassir Little misses three point jump shot | ||
| 9:12 | | Walker Kessler defensive rebound | ||
| 9:01 | | Lauri Markkanen misses two point fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 8:58 | | Jusuf Nurkic defensive rebound | ||
| 8:52 | | Yuta Watanabe misses three point jump shot | ||
| 8:49 | | Kris Dunn defensive rebound | ||
| 8:40 | | Talen Horton-Tucker misses two point driving layup | ||
| 8:38 | | Jusuf Nurkic defensive rebound | ||
| 8:31 | | Nassir Little misses three point jump shot | ||
| 8:27 | | Jordan Goodwin offensive rebound | ||
| 8:21 | | +2 | Jusuf Nurkic makes two point turnaround hook shot | 34-42 |
| 7:56 | | +2 | Kris Dunn makes two point driving floating jump shot | 36-42 |
| 7:55 | | Jazz delay of game violation | ||
| 7:39 | | +2 | Jusuf Nurkic makes two point hook shot | 36-44 |
| 7:25 | | Kris Dunn misses two point driving floating jump shot | ||
| 7:22 | | Yuta Watanabe defensive rebound | ||
| 7:13 | | +2 | Eric Gordon makes two point driving floating jump shot (Jusuf Nurkic assists) | 36-46 |
| 6:58 | | +2 | Talen Horton-Tucker makes two point cutting layup (Keyonte George assists) | 38-46 |
| 6:48 | | Jordan Goodwin turnover (traveling) | ||
| 6:41 | | Nassir Little personal foul (Kelly Olynyk draws the foul) | ||
| 6:36 | | Keyonte George misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:36 | | Eric Gordon defensive rebound | ||
| 6:22 | | Eric Gordon misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:19 | | John Collins defensive rebound | ||
| 6:09 | | Jordan Clarkson turnover (lost ball) | ||
| 6:09 | | Jordan Clarkson personal foul (Loose ball) (Nassir Little draws the foul) | ||
| 6:00 | | +3 | Eric Gordon makes three point jump shot (Jusuf Nurkic assists) | 38-49 |
| 5:36 | | +3 | John Collins makes three point jump shot (Kelly Olynyk assists) | 41-49 |
| 5:11 | | +2 | Drew Eubanks makes two point turnaround hook shot (Eric Gordon assists) | 41-51 |
| 5:03 | | Drew Eubanks shooting foul (Talen Horton-Tucker draws the foul) | ||
| 5:03 | | +1 | Talen Horton-Tucker makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 42-51 |
| 5:03 | | +1 | Talen Horton-Tucker makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 43-51 |
| 4:52 | | +2 | Drew Eubanks makes two point cutting dunk (Eric Gordon assists) | 43-53 |
| 4:27 | | Talen Horton-Tucker misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 4:25 | | Kelly Olynyk offensive rebound | ||
| 4:24 | | +2 | Kelly Olynyk makes two point tip layup | 45-53 |
| 4:18 | | Talen Horton-Tucker personal foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) | ||
| 4:09 | | +2 | Eric Gordon makes two point driving layup | 45-55 |
| 3:54 | | John Collins misses three point jump shot | ||
| 3:50 | | Grayson Allen defensive rebound | ||
| 3:37 | | +2 | Eric Gordon makes two point driving layup (Kevin Durant assists) | 45-57 |
| 3:20 | | Kelly Olynyk misses three point jump shot | ||
| 3:18 | | Drew Eubanks defensive rebound | ||
| 3:07 | | Eric Gordon misses three point pullup jump shot | ||
| 3:04 | | Kelly Olynyk defensive rebound | ||
| 2:53 | | Grayson Allen personal foul (Collin Sexton draws the foul) | ||
| 2:53 | | Jazz 60 second timeout | ||
| 2:39 | | Jordan Clarkson misses two point fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 2:36 | | Drew Eubanks defensive rebound | ||
| 2:33 | | Grayson Allen misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 2:29 | | Lauri Markkanen defensive rebound | ||
| 2:24 | | Collin Sexton misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 2:21 | | John Collins offensive rebound | ||
| 2:20 | | Jordan Clarkson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:17 | | John Collins offensive rebound | ||
| 2:09 | | Drew Eubanks blocks Collin Sexton's two point driving layup | ||
| 2:06 | | Jordan Goodwin defensive rebound | ||
| 2:01 | | Kevin Durant misses three point jump shot | ||
| 1:59 | | John Collins defensive rebound | ||
| 1:49 | | +3 | Keyonte George makes three point jump shot (Jordan Clarkson assists) | 48-57 |
| 1:25 | | +2 | Kevin Durant makes two point driving layup | 48-59 |
| 1:02 | | +2 | John Collins makes two point driving floating jump shot | 50-59 |
| 0:55 | | Lauri Markkanen shooting foul (Kevin Durant draws the foul) | ||
| 0:55 | | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 50-60 |
| 0:55 | | +1 | Kevin Durant makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 50-61 |
| 0:41 | | Lauri Markkanen misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:37 | | John Collins offensive rebound | ||
| 0:30 | | Jordan Clarkson misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:27 | | Kevin Durant defensive rebound | ||
| 0:25 | | +2 | Josh Okogie makes two point running layup (Kevin Durant assists) | 50-63 |
| 0:25 | | John Collins shooting foul (Josh Okogie draws the foul) | ||
| 0:25 | | +1 | Josh Okogie makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 50-64 |
| 0:06 | | Collin Sexton turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 0:05 | | Kris Dunn personal foul (Jordan Goodwin draws the foul) | ||
| 0:05 | | +1 | Jordan Goodwin makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 50-65 |
| 0:05 | | +1 | Jordan Goodwin makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 50-66 |
| 0:04 | | Eric Gordon personal foul (Keyonte George draws the foul) | ||
| 0:00 | | Jordan Clarkson misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 0:00 | | Jazz offensive rebound |