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PORTLAND, Oregon (Ticker) -- Penny Hardaway scored 23 points and Stephon Marbury added 21 as the Phoenix Suns rallied from a 16-point deficit and posted their fourth straight victory, 97-83 over the Portland Trail Blazers. Hardaway was 10-of-17 from the field and handed out nine assists with four steals. Marbury made just 8-of-19 shots, but the guard tandem was more than enough to give Phoenix its fourth win in its last five meetings with Portland. "I think they are playing well together," Suns coach Scott Skiles said. "They pass the ball to each other and I don't see anyone being greedy." With the game tied, 72-72, with 9:24 left, Hardaway found Bo Outlaw underneath and he laid it in to give the Suns the lead for good. The basket triggered a 21-7 run over the next seven-plus minutes, with Marbury scoring eight points during that stretch. Phoenix overcame a 48-32 deficit with 4:44 left in the first half and trailed 53-42 at the intermission. "In the first half, they were outplaying us and being tougher than we were," Hardaway said. "We had to go out strong in the second half." Hardaway gave the Suns their first lead at 67-66 with 1:15 left in the third when he took Shawn Marion's pass in the paint and put it in for a lay-up. Marion scored 15 points despite shooting just 6-of-15 from the floor. He grabbed 14 rebounds, two shy of his season high. "The Blazers are so tough," Hardaway said. "We just had our shots falling for us tonight." Phoenix led 70-68 after three periods, allowing just 15 points in the quarter, a season low for Portland. Steve Kerr scored 16 points and Ruben Patterson, Rasheed Wallace and Bonzi Wells added 15 apiece for the Blazers. Wallace added 11 rebounds. "They (Phoenix) came out and played great defense in the second half," Kerr said. "Our first half was great and that's the way the team has to play." "I'm about ready to (darn) cry about now," Patterson said. "I'm taking it real personal because in no way should we have lost that game. I don't have any words for it." Portland forward Scottie Pippen returned after missing seven games with a bruised right knee. He played 14 minutes and was 0-of-5 with four rebounds. The Blazers committed 20 turnovers, leading to 27 points for the Suns. "They had a lot of energy, got out and ran," Portland coach Maurice Cheeks said. "They are very athletic, a little more athletic than us, and they fed off our turnovers."
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