FanPost

Suns Soar past Hawks 105-97

I_medium

And so it's begun! The Suns start their 2nd half season surge with an 8-point win against the Hawks. This was a nice win overall, don't really have any complaints. The Suns beat a good team to go one game over .500 and that's all that matters.

They did their thing. They came out playing no defense, than they go on a tear(thanks to the bench) to build an 18pt lead which had them feeling really confident. In fact so confident that they decided to let the Hawks back in on purpose just to make the game more interesting for the viewers(how nice of them). Atlanta managed to tie the game 92-92 by a three from Josh Smith. That's when Nash looked at Frye and told him, "This is all part of the plan". Frye looked back at him and said, "I know" with a grin as he went on to score 6 points and block a shot to get the Suns back up by 8. Nash then sealed the deal with free-throws. Your typical Suns game. I mean nothing really out of the ordinary happened besides Dudz dunking, Warrick bombing and the bench playing ridiculously well the 2nd quarter. Yup, it was the usual, but hey that's what we ordered right? Well, as long as it gets us a win.

Highlights after the jump!

Besides Nash doing his thing- 13 points, 10 assist and poor shot clock management; the Phoenix Suns bench and Channing Frye really stepped up tonight.

Channing Frye

I said Frye would have a big game and he didn't disappoint. 20 points on 8-14 shooting including 4-8 from downtown. He was clutch as always scoring 6 huge points under 2 minutes left in the game. He came up big tonight and that's what we need. Really, we do need that. Frye is the key to this team's success(besides Nash). Remember how if J-Rich scored 20 or more points we'd usually win? Well, if Frye plays well and hits his threes we usually win. Simple as that. Everyone give it up for Channing Frye!

The Bench

Marcin Gortat- 13 points, 12 rebounds. Had his eye pocked in the 4rth quarter. Although it didn't hold him back it looked bad. Hope he's ok.

Mickael Pietrus- 11 points on his typical 3-10 shooting.

Hakim Warrick- 10 points including an awesome 3 point make that came at the last second as the shot clock winded down.

Goran Dragic- Contributed 4 assist and was the coordinator of a 28-16 2nd quarter for the Suns. Unfortunately he faded back to Goran Tragic in the 2nd half.

Jared Freaking Studley- 2 steals and 17 points on 6-9 shooting including 4-5 from three. Seriously, maybe he should be our starter instead of that guy with a beard who just happens to look like Vince Carter?

Together they combined for 50 points. They did well for the most part... Lets give it up for our bench!

Thoughts

It was a good win that got us back over .500 and it feels good to start our playoff surge that way. I just want to say that I really like Channing Frye. He doesn't get enough credit around here. He's a perfect fit for this team and I hope he's here for a long time. Of course you all know how I feel about Jared Dudley, but do you know that I think he should be a starter? Well, now ya do. I hope you enjoyed this game as much as me. It was a pleasure to right this recap for you. I love wins!

Links

Peachtree Hoops

Hawks vs Suns boxscore

[Note by Seth Pollack, 02/23/11 10:40 PM MST ]

Phoenix Suns Close Out Atlanta Hawks In Final Game Before Trade Deadline, 105-97 - SB Nation Arizona

"I just thought we didn't do a very good job with our decisions at the start of the fourth quarter.We didn't do a good job executing and as I said, we get the ball right into the post, we got to be able to complete those. We stuck Grant (Hill) down there and he did a good job, we stuck Channing (Frye) down there and Channing came through for us," Gentry said.

Audio: