PHOENIX 00 There would be no Game 1 heartbreak for Phoenix against the San Antonio Spurs. Not this time.
After resting his sore hip for three days, Steve Nash had 33 points and 10 assists, and the Suns fought off third- and fourth-quarter rallies to beat the Spurs 111-102 Monday night in the opener of their Western Conference semifinal series.
Jason Richardson scored 27 and Amare Stoudemire had 23 points and 13 rebounds for the Suns.
Manu Ginobili, tape across his broken nose, scored 27, Tony Parker 26 and Tim Duncan 20 for the Spurs, who had won three straight Game 1s against the Suns, two of them in Phoenix. Both of those times, in 2005 and 2007, the Spurs went on to win the NBA title.
In the second half, the situation seemed ripe for another of those San Antonio daggers to the Suns' heart.
Twice San Antonio rallied from 14 back, with a 12-0 run in the third quarter and a mighty 13-0 outburst that sliced Phoenix's lead to 94-93 on Ginobili's 7-foot runner with 4:26 to go in the game.
Stoudemire sank two free throws, then after Keith Bogans and Parker missed 3-pointers, Grant Hill made two from the line to put the Suns ahead 98-93.
Parker's 19-footer cut it to 98-95 with 3:38 left, then Richardson brought the house down with a 3-pointer to make it 103-95 with 1:23 left. After Parker's two free throws cut it to 103-97, Grant Hill made a 13-foot jumper with 51 seconds left, and the Suns put it away by making six of eight free throws from there.
The Spurs had to rely on their veteran big three, without much help, to stay in the game. George Hill managed just nine points on 2-of-9 shooting and struggled defensively. Richard Jefferson had five points and three rebounds in 33 minutes.
The Spurs had never led before that 12-0 outburst put them up 67-64 with 7:25 left in the third quarter. Ginobili, his nose broken by an elbow from Dirk Nowitzki in Game 3 of the first round, started and ended the run with 3-pointers.
Richardson responded with a 3 and it was 67-all. After two more ties, Nash scored on a squirming inside move, then handed out assists on the next three baskets in a 10-0 Phoenix run that put the Suns ahead 83-73. It was 85-75 entering the fourth.
Stoudemire scored the first four points of the final quarter to stretch the lead to 89-75 and it was 94-80 with 8:10 to go after Lou Amundson made one of two free throws. Yet here came the Spurs again, this time led by Duncan.
He scored seven in the 13-0 surge that almost caught Phoenix.
Nash dominated immediately after the opening tip, making his first five shots, dribbling around George Hill repeatedly for layups. He finished with 17 first-quarter points on 7-of-10 shooting. Nash wrapped up the quarter with a pair of three-point plays.
Phoenix outshot San Antonio 56 percent to 42 percent in the first half yet the Spurs were lurking within striking distance, down 57-47.
Notes
Suns C Robin Lopez says he isn't ready yet to return but expects to play in the series. He's been out since March 26 with a back injury (bulging disk). … Nash's career playoff high is 48 points against Dallas on May 15, 2005. … The Spurs are 20-10 in playoff games against Phoenix in the Duncan era. … Nash is 6-0 in the playoffs when he has at least 30 points and 10 assists. …. The fans were given orange T-shirts that red "It's R Turn." The team's marketing slogan this season was "R U Orange?" … San Antonio missed five 3-pointers in the final four minutes and wound up 4-of-19 from long range.