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Stoudemire, Suns top Kings for 14th straight win

Dec 17, 2006 - 7:11 AM SACRAMENTO, California (Ticker) -- Amare Stoudemire and Steve Nash hope this season's record winning streak sparks some postseason success.

Stoudemire had 20 points and nine rebounds and Nash collected 16 points and 12 assists as the Phoenix Suns posted a 105-98 victory over the Sacramento Kings to tie a franchise record with their 14th consecutive win.

Leandro Barbosa scored 18 points for the Suns, who shot 52 percent (42-of-81) from the field to match their longest winning streak in 14 years.

The last time the Suns won 14 straight games was during the 1992-93 campaign, which concluded with a trip to the NBA Finals.

"One other (Phoenix) team did it and we just did it, so we're pretty proud of that," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said. "We'll get beat one of these days. We want to make sure it's the other team that beats us and not beat ourselves."

"I'm not really that interested in it," Nash said. "It's nice while it's going, but it's nothing to get carried away about. We just want to play well and do the best we can."

Phoenix shared the ball well, using seven double-figure scorers to notch the victory.

"We've got a lot of weapons, a great group of guys that really enjoy playing together," Nash said. "A really unselfish group. It works well."

"It just comes from guys being unselfish, move the ball, and we just find different guys," D'Antoni said. "That's kind of been our trademark, and hopefully we'll continue to do that."

This season, after a 1-5 start, Phoenix has hit its stride, led by an unmatched inside-outside combination.

Recovering from microfracture knee surgery, Stoudemire is returning to form as a potent interior force.

"I'm close to 100 percent, just still trying to feel my way out," Stoudemire said. "I missed a full year, so I still have a little rust in my game but it's coming back."

He shot 7-of-10 from the floor and 6-of-10 from the line. Nash was 7-of-15 and set up Stoudemire for numerous easy baskets.

"Steve is our general, he's our point guard," Phoenix forward Shawn Marion said. "He's supposed to get everybody going. That's what a point guard is supposed to do, and he's doing that."

Kings guard Kevin Martin left the game with 4:24 remaining in the third quarter with a twisted right ankle. Before the injury, Martin scored 23 points for the Kings, who shot just 40 percent (35-of-88).

"When we needed some points down the stretch, I think it's obvious the way Kevin was playing we could have used his points," Kings coach Eric Musselman said. "The effort was there."