Like they always say, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. The Suns took this advice to heart as they found themselves in a huge deficit against the Wizards on Wednesday night.
The Wizards took a commanding lead right out of the gates and continued it going up by 22 early in the second quarter. The Suns looked like a team coming off a back-to-back on the road…oh wait.
This team was not going to give up that easy though.
A 9-0 run midway through the second cut the lead to 11 and the Suns went into halftime down by 12.
Now before we get into the third quarter, anyone opposed to renaming it TJ Time? Here’s why.
TJ Warren started the quarter with two quick scores to bring the Suns within 8 and the Suns continued on a 9-2 run to begin the second half. A mid-range jumper with 30 seconds left brought the Suns within just one and gave Warren a new career-high for points (including 17 in the quarter alone).
Troy Daniels opened the fourth quarter with a three to tie the game up at 90. Tyler Ulis followed this up drawing a foul and knocking down both free throws.
For the first time all night, the Suns had the lead. The 22-point comeback was complete.
From a Dragan Bender spinning and-one at the basket to Len battling in the paint to Marquese Chriss knocking down a huge three, the Suns battled together to hold onto their lead.
With only two minutes remaining and up by just one, the Suns looked to the hot-hand to close out the game: Tony Buckets.
Devin Booker drove to the rim, but as the defense closed in, he flipped the ball to the corner where Warren launched it to put the Suns up 114-110. Warren wasn’t done yet. He grabbed an offensive board and knocked down a shot to just about close out the game with a minute to go.
Warren finished with a career-high 40 points and 10 rebounds as the Suns defeated the Wizards 122-116. Booker scored 22 to go along with his five assists.
The team is now 4-1 under Interim Head Coach Jay Triano and 4-4 on the season.
The Suns get Thursday off, but will continue their road trip on Friday as they travel to New York to face off against the Knicks. Catch the action on Fox Sports Arizona.