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 Luckily, the perfect opponent was next on the schedule, allowing
the Suns to emphatically check all the boxes.
Guard Goran Dragic had 22 of his season-high 34 points in the first
half and the Suns put up 38 fast-break points, hit 12 3-pointers and
continued their mastery of the Indiana Pacers with a 116-99 win
Tuesday.
Guard Eric Bledsoe added 21 of his 27 points in the second half for
the Suns, who snapped a two-game losing streak by sweeping the
season series from the Pacers for the second straight year. Phoenix
has won 15 of the last 19 meetings with Indiana, and this is the
third time the Suns have won at least four in a row during that
span.
"This was a must-win for us and we talked a lot about what we need
to do to be successful and what it takes to be a good team," said
Dragic, pointing to a white board in the dressing room filled with
written-out challenges from a post-practice meeting on Monday. "We
had a small family meeting and just talking about what it takes for
us to win."
 Dragic has been a symbol of the Suns' sluggish start through 18
games but he found his groove Tuesday, hitting 11 of 15 shots from
the field and matching his season high for points before halftime.
"The rim looked bigger and bigger every time I took a shot and it's
one of those nights when you know you're going to make a lot of
shots," he said.
Dragic and Bledsoe outscored Indiana's five starters by a 61-42
margin. The Suns put the game away with 12 straight points midway
through the fourth quarter -- six by Dragic, four by Bledsoe and a
Markieff Morris jumper that gave the Suns an 18-point lead at 106-88
with 4:18 left.
Sunday's home loss to the Orlando Magic brought Phoenix's problems
to a head, especially at US Airways Center where the Suns are a
pedestrian 6-4.
"We've been struggling a little bit but this game was a little
easier," Bledsoe said. "Goran had it going early and everyone just
helped him out. We haven't played with the sense of urgency we need.
Teams come in here and we're not putting up a fight. That's what we
had to do today."
Guard Gerald Green added 15 points for Phoenix and had nine
3-pointers in two games against the Pacers, who traded him to
Phoenix along with center Miles Plumlee and a first-round pick for
Luis Scola in the summer of 2013.
The Suns played without leading scorer Isaiah Thomas for a fourth
straight game but the rest of the guards provided more than enough
offense.
Guard C.J. Miles had 17 points off the bench to lead Indiana, which
had forward David West and center Roy Hibbert available in the same
game for the first time this season. Nonetheless, the starting unit
struggled. Hibbert finished with 15 points and nine rebounds and
West had 10 points.
"It's a tough matchup," Indiana coach Frank Vogel said. "They have
incredible speed and if you don't take care of the basketball,
they'll expose you for 38 fast-break points. Their starters
outplayed our starters in the first half and the second half."
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Dragic made eight of 10 shots and added three steals in the first
half, but the Suns still trailed 56-54 at intermission.
Bledsoe had 10 points in the third quarter when Phoenix took the
lead for good, and the Suns put the game away with a 12-0 run midway
through the final quarter with Dragic and Bledsoe combining for 10
points.
"They got out defensively, denied us and got (13 steals)," Miles
said. "They are already powerful offensively and we gave them extra
possessions and extra chances to score."
Phoenix coach Jeff Hornacek questioned the effort of his team after
back-to-back losses and was happy with the way his team, and
especially his leaders, responded.
"It was a big talk for us about having that enthusiasm and having
that energy and the guys took it to heart," he said. "We talked
about how we think they can play and how good we can be if we do it.
Guys got in the flow tonight and were aggressive."
NOTES: Suns G Isaiah Thomas missed his fourth straight game with a
right ankle bruise that isn't getting any better. He will have an
MRI on Wednesday. ... Indiana coach Frank Vogel said he isn't
surprised with the success G Gerald Green and C Miles Plumlee have
had since the Pacers traded them to Phoenix for F Luis Scola. "No
regrets, but we totally felt like they were going to be this
productive," Vogel said. "We were very high on those guys. We were
very high on Luis Scola as well. The Suns were going for their
second straight season sweep and had won 14 of the last 18 meetings.
... F David West and C Roy Hibbert played in the same game for the
first time this season. West missed the first 14 games with a
sprained ankle and Hibbert missed the last four with the same
problem. ... Jeff Hornacek was 58-42 in his first 100 games as Suns
coach.
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