NBA ROUNDUP : Suns Flatten Magic; Run Streak to Eight

With one of the NBA’s most productive offenses in sync, the Phoenix Suns are a tough match for any club, much less the lowly Orlando Magic.

The streaking Suns, behind a balanced scoring attack and 53.6% shooting, routed Orlando, 126-103, for their eighth consecutive victory.

Kevin Johnson led the Suns with 27 points and 17 assists. Jeff Hornacek scored 26 points and Tom Chambers had 25 to go with his 12 rebounds before 15,077 at Orlando.

“It was pretty much the same kind of game that we have played the last seven or eight times out,” Chambers said. “Teams are having a tough time matching up with us.”

The Suns shot better than 50% in each quarter and hurt the Magic repeatedly with uncontested jump shots and layups that exploited Orlando’s inability to get back on defense.

Said Orlando Coach Matt Guokas: “Everybody had to play well to give us a chance. We not only had a number of guys have a bad night, they had awful nights.”

The victory moved Phoenix--10-1 in January--within one of the club record for consecutive victories. The loss was the fifth in six games for Orlando, which has given up an average of 130 points in its past seven defeats.

San Antonio 124, Washington 115--Maurice Cheeks scored a season-high 22 points, including four during a decisive 9-0 run in the final quarter as the Spurs won their 16th consecutive home game.

The victory gave the Spurs a 17-1 record at the HemisFair Arena and moved them into a first-place tie with the Utah Jazz in the Midwest Division. Washington has lost 16 of its past 17 road games.

David Robinson led San Antonio with 28 points, 16 rebounds and six assists; Terry Cummings added 25 points and David Wingate a career-high 11 rebounds. San Antonio outrebounded Washington, 57-33.

Ledell Eackles had 29 points and Bernard King 28 for Washington, which cut a 13-point halftime deficit to two points with 11:50 remaining before the Spurs’ decisive run.

Houston 116, Denver 104--Mitchell Wiggins scored 13 of his 21 points in a one-sided first quarter as the Rockets won for the ninth consecutive time at home.

Houston never trailed and led by as many as 16 points three times in the first quarter behind Wiggins, who tied a career high with 10 rebounds.

The home winning streak is Houston’s longest since 1985-86, when the Rockets won a club record 20 in a row.

Akeem Olajuwon led the Rockets with 24 points and 14 rebounds. Buck Johnson added 22 points.

Fat Lever had 24 points for Denver.