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Bledsoe's career-high 34 leads playoff-hopeful Suns past Rockets

Bill Baptist / National Basketball Association / Getty

The Phoenix Suns refuse to go away and have suddenly gotten hot as they cling on in the Western Conference playoff race. 

Backed by a career-high 34-point night from guard Eric Bledsoe, Phoenix came through with a vital road victory Saturday to top the Houston Rockets 117-102 at the Toyota Center. 

The win was the Suns' third straight, and fourth in their last five contests. They sit 2.5 games behind the wounded Oklahoma City Thunder for the eighth and final playoff spot in the West. Phoenix also has to leapfrog the ninth-place New Orleans Pelicans in order to secure its first playoff berth since 2010. New Orleans is a half-game ahead of the Suns. 

Phoenix is going to have to get in the hard way, as its remaining schedule is extremely challenging, but the team is set to embark on a four-game homestand and has contests left versus both the Pelicans and Thunder. 

Date Opponent
March 22 vs. Mavericks
March 25 vs. Kings
March 27 vs. Trail Blazers
March 29 vs. Thunder
March 30 @Trail Blazers
April 2 @Warriors
April 4 vs. Jazz
April 7 @Hawks
April 8 @Mavericks
April 10 @Pelicans
April 12 @Spurs
April 14 vs. Clippers

The Suns contained MVP frontrunner James Harden, something few teams have been able to do this season. 

Harden scored 16 points on 5-of-19 shooting, including 1-of-8 from long range, and had trouble getting to the line - a rarity for the three-time All-Star. The league leader in free throw attempts at 10 per game was 5-of-5 from the charity stripe. He also turned the ball over five times in the loss. 

Bledsoe exploded early and often, going off for 23 points in the first half to give the Suns a one-point advantage at the break. His strong play continued in the second half, and he shot 11-of-18 from the field and 10-of-11 from the line en route to the best scoring night of his NBA career. 

The Morris brothers chipped in, too. Markieff Morris had 17 points, six assists and five rebounds, while Marcus Morris dropped 17, as well, and added 10 rebounds, four assists and two steals. 

P.J. Tucker had 19 in the win, the fifth consecutive game the Suns have played without big trade-deadline acquisition Brandon Knight, who remains sidelined with a sprained ankle

Trevor Ariza had 15 points, 12 rebounds and five assists in the loss, Donatas Motiejunas provided 18 and Josh Smith had 17 off the bench. 

Related: Josh Smith throws down vicious one-handed slam

Houston, third in the conference, trails the division-leading Memphis Grizzlies by 2.5 games in the Southwest. 

The Rockets are off Sunday before visiting the Indiana Pacers on Monday. 

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