PHOENIX, Dec. 18 -- As forward Antawn Jamison adjusted his tie in the locker room after the Washington Wizards' 110-96 loss tothe Phoenix Suns on Saturday, he turned to center Brendan Haywood and asked, "Hey, how many points did Amare end up with?"
Haywood shouted back the total of the Suns' leading scorer, Amare Stoudemire: "Eight."
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"Wow," Jamison said. "I'm going to take you out to dinner for that."
The Wizards had to find something positive to take from the defeat after they became the latest team to get rolled over by the Suns at America West Arena -- they held Stoudemire to almost 18 points below his season average (25.5).
Problem was, the Wizards had no one to keep up with Shawn Marion, the Suns' jack rabbit forward with the rapid release and quick vertical leap, or Steve Nash, the speed-racer point guard who has the Suns off to the sixth-best start in NBA history (21-3). Marion scored a season-high 36 points with 14 rebounds and Nash had 13 points and 11 assists, recording his eighth consecutive game with at least 10 assists.
"We picked one poison and the other poisons hurt us," Wizards Coach Eddie Jordan said. "They just had our number."
A day after pulling off a thrilling overtime win in Los Angeles against the Lakers, the Wizards succumbed to a team that had more weapons, more long-distance shooters and more energy.
Jamison led the Wizards with 25 points, but Larry Hughes and Gilbert Arenas, who combined to score 70 points against the Lakers, had 19 apiece for the Wizards (13-9). In a matchup of the highest-scoring teams in the league, the Wizards simply were overmatched. They tried to engage in a shootout, but didn't have enough ammunition.
"We have the hounds to do it," Arenas said. "That's what they do."
The Suns shot 13 of 26 (50 percent) from three-point land and they ran often, converting 20 Wizards turnovers into 25 points. Suns forward Quentin Richardson hit five three-pointers and finished with 19 points. Reserve center Steven Hunter matched his career high with 17 points and could have had more if he hadn't caught an alley-oop pass from Marion and dislocated a finger on his right hand.
"That's the luxury that this team has," Jamison said. "From the point guard to the center, anybody can give you 30 or 35 a night. We're in a situation where we have a nice threesome and every once in awhile, somebody else can help out."
The Suns have won 17 of their past 18, with the only blemish being a 97-93 setback against Minnesota on Dec. 3. They improved to 10-1 against the Eastern Conference, losing on the road in Cleveland, and they won their previous six home games against the East by an average of 17.3 points. The Suns also beat the Wizards for the 15th time in 16 games and set a record for three-pointers by an opponent in one half with nine coming in the first two quarters.
The Wizards trailed, 61-53, in the third quarter when Hughes hit a fast-break jumper, but they went without a point for almost two minutes and Marion staged a personal 8-0 run. He had a fast-break layup, a driving layup and four free throws, giving the Suns a 16-point lead with 5 minutes 24 seconds left in the third quarter. Marion scored 15 points in the period and the Suns went into the final 12 minutes with a 78-67 lead.
"They're a wonderful team to watch," Jordan said. "They're unselfish and they're good shooters. They're just a terrific team."
And it all begins with Nash, who has helped resurrect the Suns from a 29-win team last season to a team of relevance. Nash was also the engine behind the Dallas Mavericks when they jumped to a 21-3 record in 2002. He scored the Suns' first seven points Saturday, then began to share, finding Richardson and Marion open for three-pointers on consecutive trips. The Suns had seven three-pointers in the first quarter.
"Steve is one of those guys that makes his teammates better," said Jamison, who played with Nash last season in Dallas. "Everything you expect a point guard to be, he's definitely it. He's one of those guys that makes the game very easy."
And he's a player who has other teams, such as the Wizards, searching for small victories.
