Durant, Beal combine for 70 points, but Phoenix Suns fall to Boston Celtics

Kevin Durant put up his season-high 45 points to lead all scorers but the Phoenix Suns (37-27) lost, 117-107, to the Boston Celtics (49-14) at home on Saturday.

Phoenix's loss ends its two-game win streak, and snaps Boston's two-game skid.

In Devin Booker's fourth straight absence, Durant was hot for most of the game on 18-of-26 shooting, added 10 rebounds, six assists, and a steal. Bradley Beal had 25 points and four assists in the loss.

Boston, which has the league's best record, was led by its two All-Stars. Jayson Tatum, with 29 points, and Jaylen Brown with 27.

The Celtics controlled most of the game since late in the first quarter until Durant and Beal helped the Suns surge in the second half.

As the Suns got close in the clutch, Al Horford (nine points, 12 rebounds, three assists, steal) hit his first trey out of seven attempts to extend the Celtics’ lead to eight at just under two minutes left to play.

Then on the Suns’ next possession, Brown stripped the ball out of Durant’s hands along the perimeter’s short corner, the ball fell out of bounds. The call was originally in the Suns’ favor, but was overturned after a successful challenge call from the Celtics. Boston scored six during their next three possessions to pull away.

The Suns begin a four-game road trip at the Cleveland Cavaliers on Monday at 4:30 p.m.

Durant, Beal spark runs, but Celtics' Tatum heats up in 3rd

Phoenix is still behind 87-78 after three quarter, and hasn’t led Boston since 19-18 at 4:48 in the first,.

However, the Suns' stars Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal have kept them in it. Durant scored 12 of his 32 points, and Bradley Beal had nine of is 21 in the third.

After the Suns opened the second half down by 12, Durant and Beal combined for eight in the Suns’ early 10-3 run, which cut their deficit to five at 9:24. The Celtics rebuilt its 12-point advantage halfway through the quarter as Jayson Tatum recorded nine of his 16 points in the third.

Durant and Beal heated up again as they put up seven in the Suns’ 9-0 run, which shaved the lead to three from 5:22 through the four-minute mark.

Four of Boston’s starters in Tatum, Jaylen Brown (20 points), Jrue Holiday (13), and Derrick White (10) have scored in double figures.

Brown, Celtics build lead in 2nd quarter

Boston gained more steam and closed the half with a 62-50 lead over Phoenix.

Kevin Durant scored eight of his game-high 20 points (8-of-13 shooting, 4-of-6 from the line), and Bradley Beal seven on his 12 in the second quarter.

Jaylen Brown put up 10 of his 18 in the second for the Celtics.

Boston put the pressure on as Phoenix committed four of its seven total turnovers during the period, which Boston capitalized on for an 11-point sum.

The Celtics went on a 12-4 run from 10:27 to 7:25 to push to 11, and then back up to 11 again two minutes later after the Suns made another field goal to try countering that run.

Boston eventually pushed Phoenix’s biggest deficit to 15 in the half’s final minute.

Suns, Celtics keep tight margin in 1st quarter

Boston had its biggest lead over Phoenix, 31-26, at the end of the opening quarter.

The teams started the game like iron sharpening iron, and it remained close throughout the quarter. Kevin Durant had 12 points to lead all scorers in the quarter. The Celtics' were led by their elite duo, as Jaylen Brown had eight points and Jayson Tatum seven.

There were eight ties and four lead changes, including Phoenix's biggest advantage four points.

Starting lineups

The Suns are starting guards Bradley Beal and Grayson Allen, Royce O'Neale and Kevin Durant at the three and four spots, and Jusuf Nurkic in the middle.

The Celtics are starting Jrue Holiday and Derrick White in the backcourt, forwards Jayson Tatum and Jaylen Brown, and Al Horford at the five.

Suns' Devin Booker out, Celtics' Jaylen Brown in

Phoenix's Devin Booker (right ankle sprain) has been downgraded from questionable to out, per Frank Vogel in his pregame media availability. Booker's missed four straight games since he suffered a right ankle injury in th Suns' home loss to the Houston Rockets on March 2.

Other Suns on the team's injury report include Josh Okogie (lower abdominal strain), Nassir Little (left knee inflammation), and Damion Lee (right meniscus surgery), who are out.

Boston's All-Star Jaylen Brown (sacroiliac sprain) has been upgraded from questionable to available, and fellow All-Star Jayson Tatum (right ankle impingement) has been gone from probable to available as well.

The Celtics' starting big and third-best scorer Kristaps Porzingis (hamstring) has been ruled out after being listed as questionable just hours before the game.

Additional Celtics players on their injury report are Neemias Queta (right knee hyperextension), who's probable, as well as the two-way players on their roster Drew Peterson and Jordan Walsh out on G-League assignments.

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This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns' Durant, Beal combine for 70 in loss to top-ranked Celtics