Phoenix Suns defeat Los Angeles Lakers, snap two-game losing skid

Four starters for the Phoenix Suns' (34-24) scored at least 20 points in their 123-113 win over the Los Angeles Lakers (31-28) at home on Sunday.

The victory snaps Phoenix's two-game losing streak following last weekend's All-Star break.

Phoenix's Grayson Allen had the team-high 24 points. Kevin Durant scored 22 and added seven assists and Devin Booker added 21 points and nine assists. Royce O'Neale had 20 points and matched Allen's six made 3s. Jusuf Nurkic contributed 18 points and 22 rebounds.

L.A.'s LeBron James had the game-highs 28 points and 12 assists, along with two steals and a block. Anthony Davis scored 22 and grabbed the team-high 14 rebounds, adding three steals and two blocks. D'Angelo Russell had 20 points including four 3s with seven assists in the loss.

The Suns next will host the Houston Rockets for the second of their four-game homestand on Thursday at 7 p.m.

James, Davis lead Lakers' surge in 3rd quarter

Phoenix kept the lead 95-90 to close the third as L.A. hit back hard.

The Lakers went on a 20-8 run to cut the Suns’ lead to two, and the margin stayed tight thereafter.

Anthony Davis (14 points, team-high 10 rebounds) scored 10 points in the quarter and LeBron James (tied for game-high 20 points with D'Angelo Russell) scored seven. Davis and James have five dunks between them.

All five of Phoenix's starters have scored in double figures, including Kevin Durant who heated up scoring eight of his 16 in the third.

Suns still ahead, Lakers' Russell gets hot entering half

Phoenix is in front 72-63 at the break, though L.A. has closed the gap. The Lakers had a 12-5 run for three minutes beginning at the 8:30 mark, which cut the lead to nine, and they shaved the lead to nine again entering the half.

Four of the Suns' starters and backup big Bol Bol have scored double figures. Devin Booker has the team-high 13, Royce O'Neale and Jusuf Nurkic have 12 each, Grayson Allen and Bol are matched at 11. Kevin Durant has eight with four assists.

The Lakers' D'Angelo Russell scored 13 of his 18 points in the second period to lead all scorers. He's hit 7-of-9, including four 3s. LeBron James has 13 points and game-high seven assists thus far. Anthony Davis has just four points and team-high five rebounds.

Booker, Suns build huge lead over Lakers in 1st quarter

Devin Booker led Phoenix to a huge opening quarter against L.A., holding a 45-28 advantage at the end of the first. That was the most points scored in a quarter this season by Phoenix, the Suns posted on their X (formerly Twitter) account.

Booker has 11 points and six assists in the balanced attack. The second-best scorers were Jusuf Nurkic's eight and backup big Bol Bol's seven.

L.A.'s LeBron James and D'Angelo Russell have the team-high seven points.

The Suns went on an 18-1 run from 5:21 through the next three minutes to gain their biggest lead of 20. The quarter ended on a buzzer-beating 3 from Grayson Allen (five points).

Starting lineups

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

The Lakers are opening with D'Angelo Russell at the point, Austin Reaves as the two-guard, LeBron James, Rui Hachimura, and Anthony Davis at the five.

Suns' Nurkic in, Gordon out, Lakers' LeBron, Davis in

Frank Vogel said during his pregame media availability that Jusuf Nurkic (ankle) has been upgraded from questionable to available, and Eric Gordon (groin) is downgraded to out.

Nurkic will return to his starting center role, and Vogel added that Royce O'Neale will start in his first game for the Suns to replace Gordon.

O'Neale has played five games since he was acquired from the Brooklyn Nets at the Feb. 8 trade deadline. averaged 6.4 points, 5.6 rebounds, 2.4 assists, and 1.8 steals in 22 minutes per game.

Vogel added that Beal (left hamstring) is working daily with the Suns training and medical staff on his injury that's sidelined him for the past four games. Beal's "still having discomfort with high intensity work" and "hopefully he'll be back soon" after missing up to 26 games this season.

The Lakers' LeBron James (ankle) and Anthony Davis (Achilles, hip spasms) have been upgraded from questionable to available.

Beal out, Lakers' All-Stars James, Davis questionable

Phoenix's third-leading scorer Bradley Beal (left hamstring tightness) won't play against L.A. The last time he faced the Lakers was when he scored a game-high 37 points including eight 3s, his second-best performance this season, to lead the Suns' rout on Jan. 11.

Suns' starting center Jusuf Nurkic (right ankle sprain) is listed as probable to return after he was out for their Friday loss at the Houston Rockets. Eric Gordon (left groin soreness), who's Phoenix's usual sixth man and Beal's replacement in the starting lineup since he's been out lately, is questionable. Also, Damion Lee (right meniscus surgery) remains out, as he's been all season.

The Lakers have a long list for their pregame injury report. The team's top duo LeBron James (left ankle) and Anthony Davis (Achilles, left hip spasm) are questionable, as is Cam Reddish (right ankle sprain). Backup bigs Jarred Vanderbilt (right foot sprain) and Christian Wood (left knee), as well as guard Gabe Vincent (left knee surgery), are out. Jalen Hood-Schifino and Maxwell Lewis are out on a G League assignment.

More: Ranking Phoenix Suns' Top 10 remaining regular season opponents

This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Suns beat rival Lakers, bounce back from snap 2-game skid