Suns 140, Trail Blazers 139, 4OT
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) _ Danny Manning scored six of his 35 points in the fourth overtime Friday night to give the Phoenix Suns a wild 140-139 victory over Portland in the eighth quadruple-overtime game in NBA history.
It was the first four-overtime game since Feb. 1, 1987, when Golden State defeated New Jersey 150-147.
Phoenix’s victory snapped the Trail Blazers’ six-game winning streak. Rex Chapman, who scored 28 points, finally clinched the victory with two free throws with 11.2 seconds to play.
The Blazers, who already had lost Rasheed Wallace and Kenny Anderson to fouls, couldn’t recover when Arvydas Sabonis fouled out with 4:12 left in the final overtime.
Sabonis, whose 50 minutes were a career high by nine, had 31 points, 10 rebounds and seven assists before fouling out with 4:12 left in the fourth overtime. His leaning 3-pointer from the top of the key with 2.7 seconds left in regulation forced the first overtime.
It was the first four-overtime game ever for Phoenix and third for the Blazers, whose last was a 156-155 loss to Chicago in 1984.
There have been two five-overtime games and one six-overtime game in NBA history.
Chapman scored 28 for Phoenix, including a 3-pointer that forced the third overtime. Antonio McDyess scored 17 before fouling out with 8.9 seconds to go in the first overtime. Jason Kidd had 16 assists in 56 minutes.
Brian Grant had 34 points and 17 rebounds for Portland, both career highs.
Isaiah Rider, who played 59 minutes, had 35 points and 11 rebounds for the Blazers but was 2-for-12 in the final two overtimes. His 3-pointer with 1.2 seconds left in the fourth overtime cut the Phoenix lead to one. The Suns then inbounded and the clock expired.
In a game of incredible comebacks, the Blazers outscored Phoenix 12-3 in the final 1:34 of regulation to force the first overtime.
In the third overtime, Chapman let fly with a 30-footer that went in with four seconds to go to tie it 119-119. In the third overtime, Grant scored the first six Portland points to help the Blazers build a 127-121 lead, but Chapman and ex-Blazer Clifford Robinson sank 3-pointers, Robinson’s first of the season.
The Blazers seemed to have the game won in the second overtime when John Crotty made a crucial steal and sank six consecutive free throws in the final 40.5 seconds.
Crotty, who is 19-for-19 from the line this season, stole the ball from Kevin Johnson on an inbounds play and was fouled with 40.5 seconds to go. He made both free throws to give Portland a 115-114 lead.
On the Suns’ next possession, Stacey Augmon blocked Rex Chapman’s shot in the lane and got the ball to Crotty, who playing because Kenny Anderson had fouled out. Crotty sank two more free throws with 19 seconds to go to put the Blazers up 117-114.
But Chapman let fly from far behind the 3-point line to tie the game and Portland couldn’t get a shot off before the buzzer.
The Suns’ 6-1 start is their best since 1992.
Steve Nash, who scored 10 points in the fourth quarter, made two free throws to put Phoenix up 98-95 with 5.2 seconds left in regulation. Wallace threw the inbounds pass to Sabonis, who made a tight end type of catch and then leaned into the game-tying shot.
The smaller, quicker Suns scored 14 consecutive points at the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth to take an 81-72 lead on Manning’s 11-footer with 8:51 to play in regulation.
Portland led by as many as nine points in the first half but was up just 50-48 at the break and 72-70 after three quarters.
Notes: Anderson, one of the NBA’s hottest players in recent games, was 2-for-11 with seven points before fouling out with 2:17 left in the second overtime. ... Portland has outrebounded all seven of its opponents this season. ... Robinson had 15 points in his first game back in Portland since leaving the Blazers. ... Portland coach Mike Dunleavy, who has promised to play Jermaine O’Neal in the first half of every game, didn’t insert the 19-year-old into the game until there was 52.7 seconds left in the second quarter. O’Neal didn’t play again.