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Suns pull out win in Atlanta, hand Hawks first loss

Nov 8, 2010 - 1:57 AM Atlanta, GA (Sports Network) - Steve Nash's last-second free throws iced the game for the Phoenix Suns as they defeated the Eastern Conference's last unbeaten team, the Atlanta Hawks, 118-114, at the Philips Center.

Nash ended the game with 19 points and 15 assists, while Jason Richardson chipped in a team-high 21 points in the win, Phoenix's second straight.

"I'm just going out there and being aggressive on the floor and trying to help this team win games," Richardson said. "I've had good seasons before, where I've averaged 22 points a game, but we were losing. It just feels good to be a part of a winning team."

Atlanta made it a game in the third quarter when Joe Johnson heated up on his way to a game-high 34 points on 15-of-27 shooting from the floor. Al Horford had a season-high 30 points, including 10 in the final quarter.

The teams were knotted up four different times in the fourth quarter, and the Suns went ahead for good when Channing Frye hit a short hook shot to make it a 114-112 game with 24.2 seconds to go. Johnson missed at the other end, and Nash sealed it at the foul line.

"It was a tough game," Horford said. "We were trading baskets. We gave up some key offensive rebounds and we had our chances. We just can't come out like that in the first half and expect to win like that. The way we were able to fight back and get back into it was good. We got back in it and made a game out of it."

The Suns had a balanced attack with six players in double digits, including 15 points from Jared Dudley and 14 points from Grant Hill.

Phoenix jumped out to an early 17-8 lead with the help of Hill's seven points in the first six minutes of the contest.

Atlanta then went on a 14-2 run to regain the lead 22-19, but Phoenix was on top, 30-28, heading to the second stanza.

Phoenix went up 35-28 when Dudley hit 1-of-2 free throws and a fadeaway jumper, then stole the ball from Crawford and made the layup for five straight points.

The Suns led by as many as 12 in the first half and took a 61-50 cushion into the locker room after Nash nailed a late long-distance three to make up for his nine first-half points.

Down 79-61 midway through the third quarter, the Hawks made 10 consecutive shots to cut the deficit to 90-88 heading to the fourth.

Game Notes

The loss broke Atlanta's 14 straight regular season home wins dating back to last season...Horford is shooting more than 60-percent from the field this season and was one point shy of a career-high 31 points...The Suns have won five of the last six meetings, including a sweep during the 2008-2009 season...Marvin Williams was not in service for the Hawks due to a right knee bone bruise and is day-to-day...Josh Smith got his 1,095th career block and passed Dikembe Mutombo for second place in Atlanta history.