Phoenix Suns Nipped by Toronto Raptors

The Toronto Raptors had lost 14 straight games to the Phoenix Suns dating back to 2004. Clearly, the good old days have long past for the Suns, who lost 99-96 to the perennial doormat Raptors on Tuesday night at US Airways Center. It was only the fifth win of the...

By Jay Bennett

January 25, 2012

[
        {
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Inline Content - Mobile Display Size",
          "component": "18478561",
          "insertPoint": "2",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "2"
        },{
          "name": "Editor Picks",
          "component": "16759093",
          "insertPoint": "4",
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "1"
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "17980324",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Air - MediumRectangle - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "16759092",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 8,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "7",
          "maxInsertions": 25
        },{
          "name": "Inline Links",
          "component": "17980324",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 24
        },{
          "name": "Air - Leaderboard Tower - Combo - Inline Content",
          "component": "16759094",
          "insertPoint": "8th",
          "startingPoint": 12,
          "requiredCountToDisplay": "11",
          "maxInsertions": 24
        }
      ]

The Toronto Raptors had lost 14 straight games to the Phoenix Suns dating back to 2004. Clearly, the good old days have long past for the Suns, who lost 99-96 to the perennial doormat Raptors on Tuesday night at US Airways Center.

It was only the fifth win of the season for Toronto, and it dropped the soon-to-be lowly Suns to 6-11 on this strike-shortened season.

The Raptors had been in the throes of an eight-game losing, showing themselves as one of the NBA's worst teams.

The Suns actually led by 14 points early in the game and took a four-point lead into halftime. But the Raptors roared into the second half with a 10-0 run. In the game's waning moments, Jared Dudley hit a three-pointer to close the gap to 94-90. Then Dudley made a steal and a breakaway basket to bring it to 96-94 with 23 seconds left. At that point, it was a free-throw contest with the Raptors winning.

Marcin Gortat led the Suns with 21 points and 12 rebounds. Meanwhile, Steve Nash had 17 points, seven rebounds, and 14 assists. Hakim Warrick tacked on 17 points for the Suns.

The Suns will get a couple of days off before facing the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday in Portland. Tip-off is 8 p.m. TV: Fox Sports Arizona. Radio: KTAR 620 AM. More info: www.suns.com.

KEEP NEW TIMES FREE... Since we started New Times, it has been defined as the free, independent voice of Phoenix, and we'd like to keep it that way. Your membership allows us to continue offering readers access to our incisive coverage of local news, food, and culture with no paywalls. You can support us by joining as a member for as little as $1.