Bahamian DeAndre Ayton had another double-double night, leading the Phoenix Suns (39-15) in a scorching 106-86 home victory over the reigning Eastern Conference Champions Miami Heat (28-26). The game was played at the Phoenix Suns Arena in Phoenix, Arizona, on Tuesday night in the National Basketball Association (NBA). The Suns are now winners of 10 of their last 11 games. Their only loss during that stretch came last week Thursday, when they fell to the Los Angeles Clippers, 113-103.
The Suns still sit in second in the Western Conference of the league. Ahead of them by one and a half games is the Utah Jazz (41-14).
Ayton finished with game-highs of 19 points and 13 rebounds. He shot the ball exceptionally well as he went 8-for-10 from the field to finish with a high clip of 80 percent. All of his shot attempts came around the basket, where he was efficient, outplaying Heat center Bam Adebayo, an all-star last year, who finished with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
Suns’ center Ayton was an anchor on the defensive side of the ball, coming away with two steals and one block to go along with his 19 points and 13 rebounds in 27 minutes of court time. He spoke to the media after the game about his rim protection.
“It’s fun – I’m not going to lie, this stuff is fun,” Ayton said. “Our personnel knowing and having the chemistry where whenever I call on or whatever I say, we adjust to it and we are on point. If they are sending them to me and I am protecting the rim, it means everything to me and makes everything easier. It is fun and that is what helps us to win games. We can’t shy away from that. We have to keep it up every night and never back away from challenges.”
The University of Arizona Wildcats product started the game with five straight made shots, including going a perfect 4-for-4 from the field in the first quarter. He had an electrifying highlight play when he completed an alley-oop dunk on a pass from Devin Booker at the 8:11 mark of the first quarter to put his team up 9-8. Miami ended up taking the lead at the end of the first quarter, 34-26.
The Suns showed how deep their roster was in the second quarter when head coach Monty Williams brought in the reserves. The Suns outscored the Heat 30-16 thanks to Cameron Johnson scoring eight points, Dario Saric with five points, and Cameron Payne with four points. They, along with the other Suns’ reserves, outscored the Heat significantly in that quarter. At the half, Ayton and company led 56-50.
A 50-36 second-half advantage was more than enough for the Suns to record the impressive victory, leaving the Heat in the rearview mirror for their third straight win.
Ayton’s teammate, Chris Paul, moved up the all-time steals list to number five. He had three steals on the night, and now has 2,311 steals in his 16-year career. The big man spoke about the impact that the point guard has had on him this season.
“It’s an honor every day,” Ayton said. “It’s unbelievable playing next to him, on the side of him and him being my ‘pg’ (point guard) – receiving wisdom from the guy. He knows the game so well and he pays attention to the littlest details that we are going to need… listening and playing while making the chemistry stronger and stronger. It feels like I have been in the game a little while with the things he has pointed out to me.”
Ayton has had a good April so far, in the seven games the Suns have played. In his 30.4 minutes per game, he is averaging a double-double at 17.6 points and 10.1 rebounds per game this month. On the defensive side, he is averaging 1.4 steals and 1.4 blocks per game this month and is shooting 69.1 percent from the field.
So far this season, the Bahamian is averaging 15 points a contest to go with 10.8 rebounds. He is on the path of averaging a double-double for the third straight season. Ayton is shooting a career-high 62 percent from the field.
Ayton returns to action tonight in the ‘Battle of the Bahamians’ when he and the Suns welcome Chavano ‘Buddy’ Hield and the Sacramento Kings (22-32) to the Phoenix Suns Arena in Phoenix, Arizona, for what will be their third and final matchup this season. The game tips off at 10 p.m. The two teams split the first two meetings.
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