Suns Have Three Rain

From comfortably atop the Pacific Division, where the Lakers often dwelt in more advantageous times, the Phoenix Suns are what the Lakers want to be -- fast, furious and in first.

The Lakers, dealing with their share of off-court tumult, matched the Suns’ fun-and-gun approach to near perfection Wednesday but couldn’t quite keep up with the rising Suns.

Quentin Richardson made a three-point shot with 6.9 seconds left, Kobe Bryant missed the would-be answer, a three-point attempt as time expired, and the Lakers fell to the Suns, 113-110, in front of 18,997 at Staples Center.

On a day where he issued numerous apologies to Karl Malone, Bryant had 20 points, 14 rebounds and 11 assists to keep the Lakers within range of the league’s highest-scoring team.

But just as they had done almost three weeks earlier, the Lakers lost a double-digit lead against the Suns and dropped a playoff-intensity type of game as the Suns finished with a 19-3 run.

The Suns, picked by many to finish out of the playoffs, are rolling along on a six-week sprint with their 15th game of more than 100 points.

“If we’re playing horseshoes, we’re a great horseshoe team,” Laker Coach Rudy Tomjanovich said. “We’re getting it close, but we ain’t [there].”

The Lakers were very close to their biggest victory of the season, taking a 107-94 lead on a Brian Cook jump shot with 5:50 left to play.

The Suns, however, closed the gap quickly on three-pointers for a 15-0 run to take a 109-107 lead.

With the score tied at 110 in the final seconds, Steve Nash drove the middle and found Richardson on the side. Richardson did the rest, making a three-pointer with nobody near him.

“We came up short one possession, all of a sudden are we horrible?” Tomjanovich said. “If we make one more shot, are we heroes? That’s how crazy this life is. It’s tough. It’s really tough.”

Bryant, who became the first player to post consecutive triple-doubles since Jason Kidd last December, missed the tying attempt against Shawn Marion from almost straight-away.

“I got a good look at it,” he said. “Tough shot, 35 feet from the hoop.”

Bryant also had eight turnovers, “I’m just trying to get the ball to my guys a little too much,” he said. “I’m trying to force it in too much.”

Bryant was scoreless until making a three-pointer with 4:53 left in the second quarter.

From there, he seemed to connect at will, taking 11 points and eight assists into halftime as the Lakers trailed, 67-61.

It was Bryant who supplied the fire in the third quarter, giving the Lakers their first lead, 84-82, by putting back a rebound and making the free throw after getting fouled.

Bryant was everywhere, taking charges, saving loose balls, setting up teammates and drilling three-pointers. Bryant already had a triple-double after three quarters -- 17 points, 12 rebounds and 10 assists -- and the Lakers led, 89-87.

Earlier in the day, Bryant expressed regret for remarks he made on a Monday radio show that infuriated Malone past the apparent point of no return.

Amare Stoudemire, the league’s third-leading scorer before Wednesday, had 23 points for the Suns, and Nash, the league’s assist leader, had 12 points and 10 assists. Shooting guard Joe Johnson, option No. 4 on most nights, had a game-high 25 points.

“The leap that Stoudemire has made, he was good, but he’s going to another level,” Tomjanovich said of the 22-year-old. “It’s really scary to see where he is this young. He’s just a guy who isn’t even close to his prime.”