National Basketball Association
Phoenix 99, Toronto 91
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 29, 2016
Where: Talking Stick Resort Arena, Phoenix, Arizona
Officials: #33 Sean Corbin, #61 Courtney Kirkland, #52 Scott Twardoski
Attendance: 18055

PHOENIX -- Some teams talk about absorbing a blow and responding. Phoenix Suns coach Earl Watson believes in a more proactive approach.

"Our thing is, let's be the first one to hit," Watson said. "Let's come out, be the aggressors, and let them try to counteract us. It was great lesson to impose our will defensively."

Guard Eric Bledsoe had 22 points and 10 assists for his fourth double-double of the season and guard Devin Booker added 19 points in a 99-91 victory over the Toronto Raptors at Talking Stick Resort Arena on Thursday.

Guards Kyle Lowry and DeMar DeRozan, who each average more than 22 points, had 24 apiece for the Raptors (22-10), but the other starters had only 14 points.

The Atlantic Division-leading Raptors shot 40 percent from the field and made 7-of-27 from 3-point range.

They tied a season low in points one day after a four-game winning streak was snapped in a 121-111 loss at Golden State.

"It feels good when you make a couple of shots," Bledsoe said. "It makes you want to play defense a little more. On the defensive end we help each other out, and I think we did a great job of that tonight.

"They missed some open ones, but they didn't get everything they wanted. They didn't get a lot of layups tonight, and we were fine with that."

Forward P.J. Tucker had 14 points and center Tyson Chandler had 13 rebounds as the Suns (10-23), who won for the second time in seven games.

DeRozan scored five points in 28 seconds when the Raptors cut the deficit to 90-85 with 3:25 remaining, but Booker scored the next six points on a three-point play and a 3-pointer as the shot clock expired to make it 96-85. Toronto was never closer than seven points with possession after that.

"It (stinks), especially when we try to make a run in the fourth quarter and didn't get it," DeRozan said. "We had too many mistakes tonight, too many turnovers, and couldn't make shots."

Suns rookie guard Tyler Ulis tied a career high with 10 points off the bench.

The Suns shot 44.6 percent and had a 47-43 rebounding edge.

Reserve guard Cory Joseph had 15 points for Toronto, which lost its second straight game for the first time this month. It will finish a six-game road trip at the Lakers on Sunday and San Antonio on Tuesday.

"Both of us were coming off back-to-backs, so we knew it was going to be an ugly game to start," Booker said. "We had to step it up defensively, and that's what we did.

"We knew they were going to play through (DeRozan and Lowry), and we stepped up for the challenge. It was a collective win."

The Suns are 6-9 at home and 7-4 against the East this season.

The Suns committed nine turnovers in a sloppy first quarter by both sides, when Toronto made 6 of 18 field goals but still led 18-16. The Suns had 15 turnovers at halftime and finished with 20, two more than the Raptors.

"It's a dangerous game to play when you kind of slow-feel your way into the game, no matter who you play," Raptors coach Dwane Casey said.

NOTES: Toronto F Patrick Patterson suffered a knee injury in the final moments of the first quarter and played only two minutes thereafter, finishing with zero points after going 0 for 3 from the field. He said he was limited in "rushing, jumping, pushing off it and stopping. Just everything." ... G DeMar DeRozan scored 29 points at Golden State on Wednesday, passing C Chris Bosh as the franchise's career leading scorer. DeRozan had 10,290 points entering Thursday's game at Phoenix. Bosh had 10,275 before leaving for Miami. ... Suns rookie F Dragan Bender became the youngest player in franchise history to record a double-double when he had 11 points and 13 rebounds at Houston on Monday, at 19 years, 39 days. Bender was the NBA youngest player with at least 13 rebounds since Lakers C Andrew Bynum on Nov. 29, 2006. ... The Raptors' only faster start came in 2014-15, when they were 24-8 after 32 games. ... Raptors F DeMarre Carroll started the second contest of back-to-back games Thursday but played only 18.5 minutes -- six in the second half. Carroll, returning from offseason knee surgery, sat the last time the Raptors played back-to-back games Dec. 9 against Boston.... Northern Arizona University paid the Suns to sponsor the national anthem before each home game.
Top Game Performances
 
Toronto   Phoenix
DeMar DeRozan 24 Scoring Eric Bledsoe 22
Kyle Lowry 5 Assists Eric Bledsoe 10
Jonas Valanciunas 10 Rebounds Tyson Chandler 13
DeMar DeRozan 8 Free Throws Made Devin Booker 6
Terrence Ross 4 Steals Eric Bledsoe 3
Lucas Nogueira 2 Blocks Eric Bledsoe 2
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Toronto 91 40.0 7-27 24-29 10 43 5 12 19
Phoenix 99 44.6 9-21 16-23 20 47 4 10 20
Upcoming Games
  • Phoenix will play their next game on the road against Utah. The Suns have a W/L % of .100 after a win and .391 after a loss.
  • Toronto will play their next game on the road against L.A. Lakers. The Raptors have a W/L % of .682 after a win and .700 after a loss.