Lakers Have Suns’ Number: Now It’s 3-0

Sun rise, Sun set.

The Lakers watched the first part, when Phoenix ran out to 16-point leads in the second and third quarters, then forced the further decline of the defending Western Conference champions with a comeback that led to a 107-104 victory Tuesday night before 12,100 at the Forum and a 3-0 lead in the season series against the Suns.

That comes after the Lakers took the heavily favored Suns to overtime on the road in the deciding Game 5 last spring in the first round of the playoffs. To the Lakers, that was as much a part of winning for the sixth time in the last 10 games overall as the 48-29 rally the final 17 1/2 minutes or the 26 points and eight assists by Sedale Threatt off the bench.

“We just reflect back to last year’s playoffs,” Threatt said after scoring 13 of his points in the fourth quarter. “We won the first two games and they came back to win the series. I think that was on their minds. I know it was on our minds.”

Neither team led by more than two points in the fourth quarter until James Worthy’s jumper from the left side put the Lakers up, 101-97, with 2:50 remaining, punctuated by Worthy jumping in the air in celebration. And when the Suns cut the deficit to 103-100 after Kevin Johnson sliced through the lane for a layup, Worthy answered again, this time hitting from the right side with 35.5 seconds left for a five-point cushion.

The Suns called time out, but they didn’t score again until 16.8 seconds to go to make it 106-102. Forced to foul, they sent George Lynch to the line, where he made one for a 107-102 advantage, which held up for the victory.

Facing a team that kept both its starting guards on the bench the entire fourth quarter, the Suns wilted all the way to 7-9 without Charles Barkley. A.C. Green had a game-high 28 points for Phoenix.

Vlade Divac had 19 points, 15 rebounds, eight assists and seven blocked shots. Lynch added 19 points.

Already missing Barkley, their No. 1 scorer, and with Kevin Johnson, No. 2, in only his second game back after an extended absence, the Suns unexpectedly went without top three-point threat Dan Majerle. He was a late scratch because of flu-like symptoms that apparently originated during the team’s bumpy flight earlier in the day.

The Suns were missing some 42 points from the opening lineup--not counting 11 more with key reserve Danny Ainge still out--but they didn’t look the part in racing to a 60-49 lead at halftime after promoting Elliot Perry to starter. Much of the damage came from Mark West, who had 11 rebounds before intermission, six on offense.

That, along with Phoenix shooting 54.2%, was a major reason the Lakers fell behind by 16 points midway through the second quarter, 52-36. The Lakers’ four-game home winning streak, their 2-0 advantage over the Suns in the season series--all were heading for an early exit.

Not so fast. The third quarter arrived, and so did the Lakers, all the way to a 79-79 tie with one minute left in the quarter thanks to a 20-4 charge, including 10-0 the last 2:43. That score held up until the end of the quarter, earning the Lakers a standing ovation.

Laker Notes

There was more disappointing news for Doug Christie on Tuesday, when he dropped out of the NBA’s slam dunk contest and the Lakers said he would not play Thursday against Sacramento. The new target for a return is Feb. 15 against the Clippers at the Forum, the first game after the All-Star break, which would mean Christie will miss at least 14 games because of the sprained left ankle.

The 28 points in 25 minutes by Reggie Jordan in Sunday’s victory over Utah made a big splash and might win him a contract for the rest of the season, but it doesn’t necessarily earn him a permanent spot in the rotation. No matter what happens, though, it was a big moment for someone who didn’t play basketball at the same Maywood, Ill., high school that produced Doc Rivers, had spent some 2 1/2 years in the CBA and a total of 11 minutes of NBA experience. “It is a real big change from the CBA,” Jordan said. “This is where you want to be all your life, since I was a kid. Then it was like, ‘I’m here, so I’ve got to fulfill my dream.’ Now I want to keep it alive.” Jordan had four points and nine rebounds in 24 minutes against the Suns.