Suns hand Raptors 3rd straight loss
TORONTO — Eric Bledsoe poured in 40 points and Devin Booker added 20 more as the Phoenix Suns beat Toronto, 115-103, in NBA play Sunday, handing the Raptors their first three-game losing skid in more than a year.
Toronto led by eight points in the fourth quarter, but the Suns (15-29) used a 20-7 run to take control of the game.
Tyson Chandler had 16 points and PJ Tucker chipped in with 11 points and 10 rebounds.
DeMar DeRozan led the Raptors (28-16) with 22 points and Jonas Valanciunas recorded his team-leading 17th double-double of the season with 16 points and 12 rebounds.
Toronto, which got double-digit point totals from each of its five starters, hadn’t lost three straight since November 2015.
Kyle Lowry had a rough night from three-point range, hitting just 1 of 9, but finished with 15 points. Lowry was also ejected with 1:30 left in the game after a flagrant-two foul following contact with the head of Brandon Knight.
Lucas Nogueira, back in the starting lineup after missing two games as part of the NBA’s concussion protocol, scored 13 points, including 11 in the first quarter alone. DeMarre Carroll had 14 points.
DeRozan left for the locker-room with under two minutes to go in the game. He had rolled his ankle while making a shot earlier in the fourth quarter.
Phoenix, which swept the season series against Toronto for first time since 2013-14, improved to 7-17 on the road while the Raptors fell to 15-7 at home. The game was a rematch of Dec. 29’s contest in Phoenix, which the Raptors lost 99-91.
Toronto hosts the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night.