Suns Welcome Thunder into Phoenix, Need Win

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In a make-it-or-break-it situation, the Phoenix Suns welcome the Oklahoma City Thunder into Phoenix for the biggest game of the year.

Following Oklahoma City’s loss to the Utah Jazz on Saturday night, in which the Thunder blew a 16-point lead, Phoenix trails the Thunder by three games in the Western Conference standings with just nine games left to play. A win here would be huge for Phoenix, while a loss would be detrimental and thus end all realistic hopes at making a playoff run.

Oklahoma City will be without Kevin Durant for 4-to-6 months and are relying solely on point guard Russell Westbrook to carry the load.

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Two of the three matchups between these two clubs have reached overtime this season with each team winning the overtime game on their home-court. The Thunder won the only non-overtime game between the two teams. Phoenix has won the last three games at home against Oklahoma City however.

Meanwhile, Phoenix has lost the first two games of their current three-game homestand and have even dropped a half game below the New Orleans Pelicans in the standings.

The stretch won’t get easier for the Purple & Orange as the Suns will face Portland and Golden State in the next two games before coming home to play the Utah Jazz. Then comes a four-game road trip with stops in Atlanta, Dallas, New Orleans, and San Antonio before the regular season finale against the Clippers in Phoenix.

It’s a rough trek ahead, but a win against the Thunder on Sunday could give the Suns the momentum they need to pass both New Orleans and Oklahoma City in the standings to make the playoffs.

Here’s where you can catch tonight’s game:

Date: March 29, 2015
Teams: Suns & Thunder
Tip-Off: 6:00 p.m. MST
Location: Phoenix, Arizona.
Stadium: U.S. Airways Center
TV Channel: Fox Sports Arizona & NBA TV