Rockets Stunned by Upstart Suns

The Houston Rockets fell into the Phoenix Suns’ trapping defense once again and Joe Johnson slammed the door.

Johnson made a 16-foot fadeaway jumper with 1.4 seconds to play in overtime and the visiting Suns ended the Rockets’ five-game winning streak, 99-97, Monday night.

Shawn Marion had 17 of his 29 points in the second half as the Suns rallied from a 21-point second-quarter deficit and overcame a big effort by Yao Ming, who had 29 points, 19 rebounds and six blocked shots.

The Suns’ trapping defense slowly took its toll on the Rockets, who committed 27 turnovers.

“The trap on our full-court press really bothered them,” Sun Coach Mike D’Antoni said. “They struggled against it when we played them in the past and they’ve also struggled against small lineups.”

Marion’s three-pointer with six seconds left in regulation forced overtime.

“We had chances to finish the game,” Rocket Coach Jeff Van Gundy said. “It’s a bad loss.”

Golden State 97, San Antonio 80 -- Jason Richardson had 22 points at Oakland as the Warriors ended a nine-game losing streak.

Tony Parker had 29 points for the Spurs, who struggled without Tim Duncan, sidelined for the ninth time in 10 games by a knee condition.

*

The NBA will speak to Dallas Coach Don Nelson, who made contact last week with Golden State guard Avery Johnson via e-mail and offered him a position on the Mavericks’ coaching staff starting this postseason. NBA rules do not allow for contact with players on other teams.