Suns haven't set
Yahoo! Sports' NBA analyst Steve Kerr makes his points on the postseason in his playoff notebook.
Phoenix 111, San Antonio 106
After the Phoenix Suns lost Game 3 on Saturday night, Amare Stoudemire stormed into the locker room and shouted, "We're not getting swept!"
Even the most diehard Suns fans might have doubted Stoudemire at that moment, however, after witnessing the San Antonio Spurs shut down the high-powered Suns offense. It appeared San Antonio had taken Phoenix's will that night, putting them on the brink of a four-game sweep.
But Stoudemire and the young Suns are not only talented but also very resilient – and they proved that Monday with a breathtaking 111-106 win to keep their wondrous season alive and send the series back to Phoenix for Game 5 on Wednesday.
The Suns finally found their game against the stingy San Antonio defense, running and gunning as they have all season. Joe Johnson's second game back from his injury was a potent one, as he shot 10-of-15 for 26 points and created the mismatches that San Antonio didn't have to deal with in Games 1 and 2. He continually posted up Tony Parker, took Tim Duncan off the dribble and even handled Bruce Bowen on a couple of moves with the game on the line.
Phoenix came out with a sense of desperation and finally played a good first quarter. That set the tone for the rest of the game, and the Suns found a good groove. Their 26 fast break points helped them shoot 57 percent for the game. And though they were pounded on the offensive glass, they battled defensively, taking charges and chasing down loose balls.
This was the Suns team we saw all season. Steve Nash wasn't forced to be a scorer, and he ran the team beautifully and passed for 12 assists to go with his 17 points. Stoudemire scored 31 points and made several huge plays in the final minutes, including blocking a Duncan dunk attempt. Shawn Marion, freed up because Bowen was forced to slide over and cover Johnson in the second half, grabbed 14 boards and hit a big shot late. The Suns also made nine three-pointers, many in transition.
San Antonio was hurt by subpar efforts from Duncan and Parker. One game after making all 15 of his free throws, Duncan shot just 3-for-12 from the line Monday night. Parker, meanwhile, made just 5-of-17 attempts from the field as the Suns packed their defense in and dared him to shoot.
Now San Antonio has to go back to Phoenix and face a Suns team that undoubtedly will feel a surge of confidence. The Suns will have their full roster of players in good health and playing well, and the America West Arena crowd will be rocking. To close out the Suns, the Spurs will need Parker to soften up the Phoenix defense with some perimeter shots, and they'll need to continue to wear down the Suns on the glass.
They also will need Bowen to stay on Marion, which means Manu Ginobili will have to cover Johnson. And they'll need to rev up a defense that didn't do the job in Game 4.
Winning the series is a long shot for Phoenix, but a win in Game 5 would put an awful lot of pressure on San Antonio in Game 6. And given the competitive desire of Stoudemire and his mates, Phoenix just might make this series a little more interesting on Wednesday night.
