Phoenix 103 - Cleveland 92


PHOENIX, Nov. 4 (AP) -- Steve Nash scored 30 points and had 10 assists and the Phoenix Suns - playing without Amare Stoudemire - rallied from a 12-point second-quarter deficit and beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 103-92 on Sunday night.

Stoudemire, the Suns' All-Star center, was sidelined because of soreness in his right knee. He had arthroscopic surgery on the knee Oct. 2. Coach Mike D'Antoni said Stoudemire was day to day.

Despite Stoudemire's absence, the resilient Suns were able to overcome the Cavs and LeBron James.

Shawn Marion had 23 points and 12 rebounds for the Suns. Leandro Barbosa scored 14 points, and Boris Diaw, who started in place of Stoudemire scored 16. Nash had 22 points in the second half.

James scored 27 points, 21 in the second half, while Zydrunas Ilgauskas and Drew Gooden each scored 22. Gooden had 14 rebounds and Ilgauskas 13.

The 7-foot-3 Ilgauskas, who was being guarded by the 6-8 Diaw or 6-9 Brian Skinner, dominated the first half, scoring 14 points and grabbing eight rebounds en route to the 150th double-double of his career.

Gooden, also enjoying a two-inch height advantage over Grant Hill, chipped in with 12 points and 10 rebounds, helping the Cavaliers to a 45-38 halftime advantage over the cold-shooting Suns. At one point, the Cavaliers led 39-27.

With their huge height advantage, the Cavaliers enjoyed a 35-17 rebounding edge in the first two periods. They also had a 12-1 bulge in second-chance points and a 30-18 margin in points in the paint.

While Ilgauskas and Gooden were manhandling the short-handed and ailing Suns, James didn't join in the fun much. Coming off a 45-point effort against the New York Knicks on Friday night, he was held to six points on 3-of-12 shooting in the half.

Marion was the only bright spot for the Suns, scoring 13 points, including Phoenix's only two 3-pointers.

The rejuvenated Suns picked up the pace in the third period and took a 69-64 lead into the fourth quarter. Nash ignited the comeback with a 3-pointer and finished with 10 points in the period. Phoenix went ahead for good 55-53 on a turnaround bank shot by Diaw.

James also got rolling in the quarter, scoring 11 points, including a tomahawk dunk, but didn't get much help from his teammates and the Cavaliers were outscored 31-19. Nash made sure the Suns didn't lose the lead in the fourth period, scoring 12 points.

Notes: Jerry Colangelo, the founder of the Suns, was inducted into the team's Ring of Honor during halftime. ... This was the start of a six-game Western road trip for the Cavaliers. ... The Suns now will go on a four-game Eastern road swing. ... Sasha Pavlovic suited up for the first time this season for Cleveland, after ending his contract holdout. ... Anderson Varejao still has not played for the Cavs because of a contract dispute. ... Cleveland also was missing two other key reserves, both with injuries - Donyell Marshall (sprained right wrist) and Eric Snow (sprained left knee).

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