Devin Booker dropped 27 points to help lead the Phoenix Suns to a 134-106 victory over the Washington Wizards. Chris Paul added 13 points and 10 assists. Deandre Ayton chipped in 14 points and 10 rebounds. Five other Suns players cracked double figures.
The Suns held a 57-55 lead heading into halftime, but they wasted no time building their lead even further in the third quarter, as they started it off on a 21-4 run with Booker scoring 10 of those points. Booker put up 17 points in the period, as the Suns went on to outscore the Wizards 44-24.
Booker got off to a slow start in the first half but got comfortable with his shot at the right time, as he got back to beating his defenders off the dribble and dialing it in from deep.
“We just had to lock in,” Booker said. “I think we were low on juice in the first half and they weren’t stopping. They are going to keep coming at you so we wanted to put some type of statement in the game and lock in. We did that and ran away a little bit and held that lead the rest of the time.”
Career Night for Neto
Raul Neto stepped into the starting lineup for the injured Bradley Beal and didn’t disappoint, as the 6-foot-1 guard displayed his quickness on multiple drives to the rim and beat his defenders off the dribble for some sweet finishes to the rim, finishing with a career-high 24 points on 9-of-17 shooting.
“Every time you’re missing a player, more when it’s one of your best players or your best players it’s tough to win games,” Neto said. “I just always come out there playing the game.. if I have to score, if I have to play defense, if I have to create for others I just try to do that, and today I was feeling good offensively and just got going.”
He’s played with a ton of heart all season long, and it’s great to see him making the most of every opportunity that has come his way.
Russell Westbrook put up yet another triple-double in this one, as he had 17 points, 14 assists and 11 rebounds.
