Damon Stoudamire led a fourth-quarter surge as the Trail Blazers extended their winning streak to a season-high four games with a 108-99 victory over the slumping Phoenix Suns.
Labeled as a dysfunctional, underachieving team, the Blazers started slowly this season under new coach Mo Cheeks but have begun to show signs of turning things around.
On Wednesday, Stoudamire scored 19 points and also was unselfish with the ball, handing out six assists to help the Blazers place six players in double figures.
 Bonzi Wells scored four points in all four quarters, and was one of six Blazers in double figures. Mitchell Layton /NBAE/Getty Images |
Wallace finished with 19 points and Derek Anderson 17 for the Blazers, who have won seven of their last eight games to return to the .500 mark (19-19).
"The most important thing is we came in here and got a win," Stoudamire said. "We felt we should have beaten them twice already but we lost. Tonight was a game where we wanted to come in here get back to .500. We were able to do that."
"It's our defense which has gotten a lot better over the last few games," Cheeks said. "It's taken us where we are now. We've just kind of grouped ourselves together."
Stephon Marbury scored 29 points and handed out nine assists for Phoenix, which lost for the seventh time in its last eight games and fell under .500 (19-20). Shawn Marion had big game with 19 points and 15 rebounds.
"They're a real good team, despite their record," Marbury said. "They made some tough shots when they went to the post. They were playing in and out when it was kind of tough because their guys starting hitting shots at the end, and we were trying to scramble."
A pair of foul shots by Marbury with 7:49 remaining helped the Suns get within 81-76 but they got no closer.
Marbury received little help from backcourt mate Penny Hardaway, who was benched for much of the fourth quarter and finished with just four points on 2-of-7 shooting in 27 minutes.
Phoenix coach Scott Skiles spoke of benching Hardaway in favor of Tony Delk, who scored 17 points on 7-of-17 shooting.
"I felt like I needed some energy in the game and I thought that Tony brought that out there," Skiles said. "Tony came in and hit a couple of big shots right away."
Portland was ahead by seven points when it began to pull away behind Stoudamire, who made two foul shots and a 3-pointer before Wallace drained a 25-footer from the left side to give the Blazers their biggest lead with under four minutes left.
Stoudamire went 7-of-15 from the field and Wallace 8-of-18 as the Blazers placed all five starters in double figures. It was Portland's best offensive game since a 101-92 victory at Houston on December 18.
Bonzi Wells scored 16 points and Scottie Pippen added 13 for the Blazers, who shot 48 percent (41-of-85) and held a 46-40 edge on the glass. Dale Davis led the charge on the boards for the Blazers, matching a season high with 16 rebounds.
Pippen scored 10 points in the first half, helping the Blazers open a 47-43 lead.
Rodney Rogers added 22 points off the bench for Phoenix, which shot 46.5 percent (40-of-86).