Suns 101, Hornets 96: Booker's 30 steadies Phoenix after a 17-point lead vanishes
Charlotte's 33-11 run flipped the game, but 25 Hornets turnovers and a late Booker 3 let Phoenix close it out.
Devin Booker scored 30 points and the Phoenix Suns recovered from blowing a 17-point lead to beat the Charlotte Hornets 101-96 on Thursday night in Phoenix. Booker added seven assists and three steals, and it was his late 3-pointer and steal that closed it out.
How the lead got away
Phoenix looked in control early. Booker scored 13 in the first quarter as the Suns led 28-22, and Miles Bridges capped a 15-4 run with a layup midway through the second to make it 48-31, according to the Associated Press.
Then Charlotte took over. The Hornets used a 33-11 run spanning the second and third quarters to go ahead, KTIK reported, and led 76-72 entering the fourth, per ESPN's line score. Charlotte owned the glass, winning the rebounding battle 51-31, with Moussa Diabate pulling down 13.
What kept Phoenix in it was Charlotte's ball security. The Hornets committed 25 turnovers, 10 of them in the first quarter, and the Suns turned those into 38 points, per KTIK.
The finish
The Suns opened the fourth on a 20-10 run, and Dillon Brooks' 3-pointer with 3:40 left made it 92-86. Booker's 3 in the final 30 seconds pushed the lead to 97-91. Royce O'Neale, one of the players Phoenix sent to Charlotte for Bridges, answered with a four-point play to make it 97-95, but Bridges made two free throws and Booker sealed it with a steal and two more from the line.
Bridges against his old team
It was Bridges' first game against Charlotte since last summer's trade. The 12th pick in the 2018 draft spent his first seven seasons with the Hornets and ranks third in franchise scoring history, the AP noted. He finished with 11 points and six rebounds. Grayson Allen, who went to Charlotte in the same deal along with O'Neale, scored 14 for the Hornets.
What it means
After a 1-5 start, Phoenix has won four of five and is 4-2 on a season-long seven-game homestand. Brooks (15) and Collin Gillespie (13) gave Booker support and Jalen Green added 12, though the Suns shot 13-for-43 from three, two nights after making a season-high 22 of 43 against the Clippers.
Charlotte has lost seven of eight. Coby White scored a season-high 21 and Naz Reid added 16, but the Hornets were without Brandon Miller (hip), Kon Knueppel (hamstring) and Dennis Schröder (hamstring).
Next up, Phoenix hosts the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday, and Charlotte visits the LA Clippers the same day.