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Tuesday, Jan. 4 9:00pm ET
Gugliotta grabs team-high 10 boards | |||||
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PHOENIX (AP) -- Tom Gugliotta didn't have the triumphant return he would have liked, but after what he's been through, he was just glad to be back. Cliff Robinson scored 30 points and Gugliotta returned to the lineup for the first time since his life-threatening seizure Dec. 17 as the Phoenix Suns beat the Charlotte Hornets 86-80 Tuesday night.
Gugliotta grabbed a team-high 10 rebounds but scored only two points on 1-for-6 shooting in 16 minutes. "I felt good. I wish I could have played better, but I think it's just reality," he said. "It's going to take me a few games to get my legs back and timing. I tried to get back and rebound and defend and that worked out well, but looking to be aggressive offensively or just the little things of the game just weren't there for me tonight." All of Robinson's points, including four 3-pointers, came in the first three quarters for the Suns, who played for the first time in six days. He also had nine rebounds and five assists. "He's having a great season so far," Charlotte coach Paul Silas said of Robinson. "I see no reason why he shouldn't be considered for All-Star play." Jason Kidd had 11 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds for Phoenix. Todd Day was the only other Suns player in double figures with 13. Derrick Coleman had 14 points and a season-high 19 rebounds for Charlotte but was 4-for-14 from the field. Elden Campbell and David Wesley scored 18 apiece for the Hornets. Charlotte shot just 32 percent from the field (26-for-81). "That was in my opinion our best defensive game," Phoenix coach Scott Skiles said. "To hold them to 35 points in the second half and 26 field goals for the game, I thought, was excellent." The Hornets were less apt to credit the Suns' defense. "The shots just didn't go," Silas said. "We had the shots, but we just missed." Down 79-65 after Day's driving one-handed shot with 9:12 to play, the Hornets went on a 10-0 run to cut it to 79-75 on Anthony Mason's 13-footer with 4:06 to play. Oliver Miller's three-point play with 3:52 remaining boosted Phoenix's lead to 82-75, and Charlotte never got closer than five again. The Suns improved to 12-1 against the Eastern Conference. "We're doing well against the Eastern Conference," Robinson said, "but it's time to do a little better job against the Western Conference, and hopefully we can start Friday night against San Antonio." The Suns took charge with an 11-0 run early in the second half. Robinson scored 13 in the third quarter as the Suns led by as many as 14. Kidd had six assists in the period. After falling behind briefly 50-48 to start the second half, Phoenix scored 11 in a row to go up 59-50 on Robinson's drive to the basket with 6:14 left in the third. Robinson sank a 3-pointer, then threw a no-look pass over his head to Miller for a layup to put the Suns up 73-59 with 1:36 left in the third. Phoenix led 73-62 going into the final quarter. Gugliotta started after missing seven games following his seizure on the team bus following a game in Portland. Team doctors suspect the seizure was caused by a supplement Gugliotta took moments earlier. "It was wonderful for everybody involved to see Tom back out there," Robinson said. Robinson scored 17, including three of four 3-pointers, in the first half as Phoenix took a 48-45 lead at the break. The Suns led nearly all of the first half but never by more than seven points. Phoenix was 8-for-15 from 3-point range in the first half but didn't shoot a free throw, while the Hornets were 13-for-16 at the line. Game notesThe Suns' Penny Hardaway was in Los Angeles Tuesday to have his injured foot examined by a specialist and had his foot placed back in a protective boot. ... Phoenix is 15-3 at home. ... The Hornets played the second of six in a row on the road, with games coming up at Utah, the Los Angeles Lakers, Denver and Milwaukee. ... Kidd didn't score his first points until 3:03 remained in the first half. ... Charlotte has lost four in a row on the road. | ALSO SEE NBA Scoreboard Charlotte Clubhouse Phoenix Clubhouse RECAPS Indiana 116 New Jersey 111
Phoenix 86
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