Morris' double-double leads Suns past Raptors


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PHOENIX (AP) - Markieff Morris made his first 11 shots en route to a 25-point performance and the Phoenix Suns handed the Toronto Raptors their fifth straight loss, 106-97 on Friday night.

Morris, who also grabbed 11 rebounds, finished 11 of 14 from the field, tying his career high in field goals made. His scoring total was three shy of his career best.

Eric Bledsoe added 19 points, including 3 of 3 on 3-pointers, and P.J. Tucker had 18 points and a career-high 13 rebounds for the Suns.

Amir Johnson scored a season-best 22 for the Raptors. Kyle Lowry added 19 and Rudy Gay 17.

The Raptors lost Tyler Hansbrough with a sprained left shoulder in the first quarter.

Phoenix took control with a 16-6 run late in the third quarter. Bledsoe sank a 3-pointer, fed Morris for a layup, then made a free throw when Lowry was called for a technical foul and Phoenix led 76-63 with 1:51 left in the period.

Morris' final field goal, a 17-footer, put the Suns up 81-69 with 42.9 left in the quarter. Toronto scored the next five to cut the lead to 81-74 entering the fourth.

After the Suns scored the first five points of the final quarter, Steve Novak's 3-pointer cut it to 86-77 with 9:44 remaining, but Gerald Green made two 3s in an 11-6 surge to give Phoenix its biggest lead of the night, 97-83 with 4:37 to go.

The Raptors scored the next eight to make it 97-91 on Johnson's layup with 2:42 left before Bledsoe's 3 boosted the lead to 100-91 with 1:46 remaining.

Morris' string of baskets ended when he lost control going up for a layup and the shot went off the front of the rim.

Toronto led by seven points in the second quarter before a late 9-0 Phoenix run. Goran Dragic's 3 put the Suns up 48-47 with 2:05 left in the half, then Morris' 12-foot turnaround jumper from the baseline made it 52-47. Phoenix led 52-50 at the break.

NOTES: The Raptors had beaten Phoenix three times in a row. ... Toronto had two days off during a road trip for the first time this season. ... The Raptors entered the game first in the NBA in second-chance points at 17.7 per game but the Suns had 21 second-chance points to Toronto's 16. ... The Raptors led by 27 in the third quarter Tuesday night at Golden State but lost, the largest comeback by an opponent in Raptors' history. ... Toronto completes a three-game road trip Sunday against the Lakers.

(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

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