No Kevin Durant, but the Suns outscore the Jazz from distance

Devin Booker and Bradley Beal combined to hit 9 of 16 3-pointers en route to 24 and 31 points, respectively, and the Phoenix Suns opened NBA Cup group play with a 120-112 win over the host Utah Jazz on Tuesday in Salt Lake City.

Mason Plumlee posted a double-double with 15 points and 14 rebounds, replacing the injured Jusuf Nurkic (ankle) for Phoenix, which was also without All-NBA forward Kevin Durant for a second game because of a calf strain.

Despite missing two starters, Phoenix pounced on Utah early.

The Suns trailed briefly in the first quarter before going on a 15-4 run that gave them their first double-digit point lead of the night. Phoenix’s lead grew to as many as 18 in the second quarter.

Utah, looking for its first home win of the season, erased the deficit in the second half. Jordan Clarkson hit two 3-pointers in the final minute, both of which pulled the Jazz within six points, but they couldn’t get any closer.

Phoenix’s margin of 15 of 20 to 7 of 9 at the free throw line helped keep Utah at bay. The Suns also benefited from outscoring the Jazz from beyond the 3-point arc on a night where both teams shot well from distance.

Beal, who shot 4 of 7, and Booker, who shot 5 of 9, helped Phoenix go 18 of 39 (46.2 percent) from distance. Grayson Allen came off the bench and hit 4 of 9 from beyond the arc, accounting for some of his 15 points.

Clarkson’s 4-of-9 shooting on the night led Utah to 15-of-38 shooting (39.5 percent) from 3-point range, including the two from down the stretch. Clarkson finished the game with 16 points off the bench. Jazz rookie Kyle Filipowski added 18 points off the bench and Lauri Markkanen scored 17 points.

Utah also got a big second-half performance from John Collins, who scored six straight points over a stretch midway through the fourth half. Collins’ excitement, part of a team-high 29 points, couldn’t be dampened as Devin Booker responded with five points down the stretch and Royce O’Neal hit a 3-pointer that increased the Phoenix lead to 13.

–Field level media