Sunday night at Kia Arena turned into a tough, hard-fought battle as the Phoenix Suns took on the Orlando Magic. This is the kind of game you expect against the feisty Magic. A young, cheeky and physical team with all the qualities that often cause problems for the Suns.

The Suns lost the game 115-110 after being outscored 58-48 in the second half. They turned the ball over 13 times in that half. It was the third straight game where they had a halftime lead, but their ability to stay focused and make adjustments in the second half has kept them at 12-11 on the season.

Devin Booker finished the game with a team-high 25 points, but he needed 21 shots to reach that goal as he had a shooting percentage of 38.1%. Phoenix has lost its last six away games.

---

Game flow

First half

The suns need their stars to be stars. Period. And heading into the game against the Magic, it would be hard to tell who was the max-contract shooting guard and who was a role player. Devin Booker stands in the corner and watches Mason Plumlee and Tyus Jones take most of the shots in the first six minutes of the game.

It wasn’t until 4:40 into the game that Booker made his first shot, a layup.

Booker focused on getting his teammates involved early in the game and recorded five assists in the first quarter. He also contributed 6 points, but committed 2 turnovers.

Tyus Jones was the star early on, knocking down two three-pointers during an impressive 17-3 Suns run that included six consecutive field goals. His threes were part of a three-point barrage from the Suns, who shot 6 of 10 from long range in the opening period. Jones finished the first quarter with a team-high 10 points.

Phoenix built a lead of as many as 12, but Orlando responded with a 12-5 run to close the quarter, cutting the Suns’ lead to 34-29 after one play.

The Magic’s run continued to open the second period, and a team that ranks last in the NBA in three-point shooting started the game 4 of 6 from deep. In the middle of the run, Mike Budenholzer wasted his challenge with an offensive foul from Grayson Allen. That was at 9:28 in the second. Good call.

We saw a lineup where Bol Bol and Mason Plumlee were on the court at the same time, so that was something different.

The Orlando bench dominated the Suns in the first half, outscoring them 30-14 and providing a significant boost.

However, Tyus Jones got the Suns’ offense back on track upon his return and stayed hot with two more three-pointers from beyond the arc. Once again, his shot sparked a run that gave Phoenix a 5-point lead with 2:15 left in the half.

The Suns took a 5-point lead at halftime despite the Magic shooting 53.7% efficiently. Orlando’s offense was fueled by Cole Anthony’s 10 points and Mo Wagner’s 9 points off the bench, as well as 7 points each from Goga Bitadze and rookie Tristan Da Silva.

Meanwhile, Booker and Beal combined for 20 points on 8 of 14 shooting, but it was Tyus Jones who led all scorers with 16 points and 5 assists.

Second half

Royce O’Neale picked up right where he left off in the first half and quickly added five points to open the quarter. For comparison: The best three-game stretch in Royce’s career was in February 2019, when he scored a total of 45 points between matchdays 6 and 12. With his 13 tonight, he’s 55 points over the Suns’ last three games.

Goga Bitadze recorded a double-double with 11 points and 10 rebounds midway through the third quarter, fueling the Magic’s recovery. With Jusuf Nurkic unable to challenge him in the game, Bitadze took full advantage and asserted his dominance on the boards.

Physicality took center stage in the third quarter as the Magic increased their aggressive play. Meanwhile, the Suns struggled to match that intensity, often finding their attempts to play physical were met with silence from the officials. When Phoenix started missing shots, the momentum they had built quickly faded.

A 16-2 run put the Magic back in the lead.

Josh Okogie brought his trademark chaotic energy to seemingly everywhere at once late in the third quarter. He went for several offensive rebounds, but the Suns struggled to capitalize on the additional opportunities.

Despite being narrowly outscored 27-26 in that period, Phoenix maintained an 88-84 lead early in the fourth quarter. Booker had 10 points in the fourth, albeit on 3 of 7 shooting. Bitzade had 10 points and 6 boards in the quarter.

The Magic’s second unit, led by the ever-vocal Mo Wagner, increased the physicality early in the fourth quarter. They poked, prodded, and flapped across the hardwood, doing whatever they could to attract calls. It is a mental game that is difficult for opponents to overcome. The magicians embody the childhood pest who constantly threatened, “I will sue you.”“. An annoyance, a distraction and a relentless source of frustration.

The Suns’ turnover machine once again did them no favors. By the middle of the quarter they had already made 4 appearances, bringing their total to 18 for the game. Once again it was Bradley Beal who simply dribbled to shoot the ball away. Do you think that when Bradley Beal goes to a restaurant he has to tell his waiter that he is allergic to dribbling the basketball?

With 6:38 left, the Suns went into the bonus, where Beal tied the game with one of two free throws to make the score 98:98. But Orlando responded with a 7-2 run, capped off with more three-pointers. This is also the worst three-point shooting team in the NBA.

Jalen Suggs, a player known for his hustle and frequent falls – he was warned for a flop in the game – hit the hardwood so late in the game that the referees blew the whistle. In the fourth game he had 14 points, including 5 shots from the free throw line.

Suggs’ aggressive style was on display when he flew into a foul on Devin Booker with 35.3 seconds left in the game, which was ruled a common foul.

It was Goga’s career-high 16th rebound, which came as an offensive tip-off and sealed the deal.

---

The Suns have a week off as they don’t play again until next Saturday against the Utah Jazz. Hopefully the time off will provide the peace and quiet you need to heal and refocus.