The Associated Press
Seattle's Desmond Mason (24) and Phoenix's Jake Tsakalidis battle for a board in the Sonics' win.

Barry, Baker lift Seattle to triumph over Suns

LUIS CABRERA, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

SEATTLE -- After trying to outshoot too many opponents this season, the Seattle SuperSonics won a game with their defense.

Brent Barry scored 21 points and Vin Baker added 17 points and nine rebounds as the SuperSonics snapped a three-game home losing streak with a 90-79 victory over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night.

"When we defend the ball the way we did the second half -- aggressive, scrappy, rebounding, we're capable of scoring," Seattle coach Nate McMillan said. "It was definitely the defense that got our offense turned around."

Seattle held Phoenix to a season-low 27 points in the second half. Phoenix shot just 12-for-42, or 28.6 percent in the half, after shooting 50 percent in the first.

"We started stopping guys," Seattle's Desmond Mason said. "We were scoring baskets all along, but we weren't stopping anybody."

Barry scored 12 of his points in the fourth quarter as Seattle snapped a four-game losing streak to the Suns.

Shawn Marion led the Suns with 19 points. Jake Tsakalidis had his first career double-double with 10 points and a career-high 16 rebounds. Stephon Marbury added 16 points and 12 assists for Phoenix.

Seattle, which trailed by as many as 11 late in the second quarter, used a driving layup by Earl Watson and a 3-pointer by Barry to take a 70-67 lead with 10:18 left in the fourth.

The Suns never got closer than three points the rest of the way.

"Our trouble started as soon as we came out of the locker room," when Seattle started the second half with a 7-0 run, Suns coach Scott Skiles said.

"It's very distressing that you play at least well enough to get that kind of lead in the first half, and the break is coming up. It's a game we need to win, and we just come out flat."

Marion agreed.

"The third quarter killed us. We had too many turnovers and didn't take care of the ball," he said. "They got out there on the run and ended up getting a lot of fast break points."

Gary Payton, who leads the Sonics with 22.9 points per game, matched a season low with 11 points on 5-of-12 shooting. However, he was impressed by the way his teammates filled the gap.

"That's great," he said. "It gets their confidence up, and if they can keep their confidence up like that, it's going to be great for our team."

Tied for third place in the Pacific Division entering the game, both teams were coming off a victory over Golden State.

The Suns closed out the second quarter with a 21-10 run and led 52-43 at the break. Marbury had eight points, two assists and a steal in the outburst.

The 7-foot-2, 285-pound Tsakalidis controlled the middle in the first half, altering numerous shots. He had three blocks, and 11 rebounds in the first half, and finished the game with four blocked shots.

"We just weren't getting him out of the way down low," Barry said. "Defensively, he was doing a good job of clogging up the lane, getting his hands on some shots, and offensively the balls were just falling in his hands.

Tsakalidis made two free throws with 4.7 seconds remaining to lead Phoenix to a 92-91 victory in the teams' first meeting on Nov. 13 in Seattle.

Baker scored 13 first-half points for Seattle, which shot 40 percent from the field. Baker returned to the starting lineup after missing Tuesday's 113-87 victory over Golden State with neck spasms.

Notes:@ Phoenix's Jake Voskul sat out the game with an injured left foot, and Rodney Rogers sat with a left ankle sprain. Both are listed as day-to-day. ... Seattle swingman Desmond Mason will defend his All-Star slam dunk title on Saturday in Philadelphia. Payton will play for the West team on Sunday. The Suns will have no representative on the West team. ... The Suns lead the series against the Sonics 101-75. ... The teams meet Feb. 19 in Phoenix.

Sonics 90, Suns 79

- Record: 25-23.

- Tuesday: Dallas at Seattle, 7 p.m. (KONG).

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