Phoenix, AZ (Best E Casino) - Amare Stoudemire and Shaquille O'Neal had their way on the blocks, finishing with a combined 39 points and 21 rebounds in Phoenix's 107-96 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers.
Stoudemire logged 23 points and 13 boards, while O'Neal showed signs of rejuvenation with 16 and eight. Matt Barnes registered 21 points, and Steve Nash contributed 20 points and seven assists for the Suns, who have won two of three to open the season.
Brandon Roy and Rudy Fernandez led Portland with 20 points apiece, while LaMarcus Aldridge chipped in 16 points and six rebounds for the Trail Blazers, who were coming off a solid 100-99 victory over San Antonio.
Phoenix has now won 10 straight in the series.
With Blazers center Greg Oden sidelined two-to-four weeks with a sprained right foot, Phoenix figured to attack the glass. But three pointers from Raja Bell, Nash and Barnes midway through the first period gave the hosts a 22-11 lead and further opened up the middle.
Portland erupted for a 20-6 run to open the second quarter and led 50-49 at the break, but nine straight Phoenix points starting at the 6 1/2-minutes mark in the third pushed the Suns ahead, 69-61.
Stoudemire had 16 points in the frame to take an 80-72 lead heading into the final quarter, and Portland would not get closer.
"[Stoudemire] really did a good job," Suns head coach Terry Porter said. "I think he is slowly finding his rhythm. He seemed to be feeling more and more comfortable on the floor. It was nice to see that he gave that lift offensively that we need."
Phoenix had an answer for each rally, with Nash's three-pointer for an 11- point lead with 1:49 remaining being the nail in the coffin.
"They just packed in their defense and we shot the ball from the perimeter," Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan said. "We can attack that zone or their man [defense] but we didn't do that. They were the aggressors, they got 30 free throws tonight to our 14. Amare and Shaquille are very physical guys. At times, they just overpowered us in the paint."
Game Notes
Bell had 13 points for Phoenix...The Suns shot 38-of-69 (55.1 percent) from the field, compared to 37-of-81 (45.7 percent) for the Blazers...The Suns owned the foul line, taking 16 more attempts from the stripe. The hosts hit 25-of-30 of their free throws in the victory.
