Canadian guard Steve Nash, last season's National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player, injured his right ankle on Monday, but the Phoenix Suns still won their 11th game in a row.
France's Boris Diaw scored 20 points and grabbed 12 rebounds, while Brazil's Leandro Barbosa, the NBA's top three-point shooter, scored 12 of his 15 points in the last seven minutes to spark the Suns past the New Orleans Hornets 101-88.
Shawn Marion contributed 19 points and 16 rebounds for Phoenix, which improved to 42-17 and moved within three games of matching the longest win streak in club history.
PHOTO: AP
Nash ignited a third-quarter rally by the Suns to overcome a 61-49 halftime deficit but hurt his ankle on a drive to the basket late in the period. He sank a free throw to lift the Suns within 71-67 but departed and did not return.
That put the Suns in an unusual situation, but Phoenix found leadership and point production down the stretch from their global stars to defeat the Hornets, who now play most home games here in the wake of Hurricane Katrina.
"We've played without Steve for stretches, but never at the end of a game," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said.
"Our second group is getting a lot more confidence. Guys like Barbosa and Diaw were incredible down the stretch, but we don't want to make a habit of trying to win without him," he said.
The Suns trailed 79-71 entering the fourth quarter but Diaw converted a three-point play and a driving dunk around a 3-pointer by Raja Bell, tying the contest in less than two minutes.
"I kept looking down the bench to see if Steve was coming back so much so I may have whiplash," D'Antoni said. "But the guys did a great job without him."
Eddie House gave Phoenix the lead for good at 83-81 on a basket with 7:18 remaining before Barbosa took over.
Hornets rookie Chris Paul had a three-point play, but Diaw made a jumper and Barbosa sank two 3-pointers for a 95-84 bulge with 3:36 to play.
"Boris was a rebounding machine," said Nash, who watched the fourth quarter from the locker room. "I think they got cold from the floor and we kind of hit our stride at the same time."
Bell scored 17 points and Nash added 12 and seven assists for the Suns, who also have won six road games in a row.
"We didn't take advantage of Steve Nash leaving the game," Hornets forward David West said. "This team is designed to get up and down the floor with or without him. They exploited mismatches and really attacked us."
The Hornets, 31-28, scored an NBA record-low 16 points in the second half of a road loss last week to the Los Angeles Clippers. They managed only nine points on 3-of-18 shooting in the fourth quarter against the Suns.
"In the second half, we started putting the clamp down on defense," Marion said. "Teams can hang with us for two or three quarters, but when that fourth quarter kicks in, we run away with it."
The Hornets, in position to reach the playoffs, return to New Orleans for a game for the first time since the city was flooded more than six months ago when they host the Los Angeles Lakers today.
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