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SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Isaiah Thomas heard a sound he had never heard before in Sacramento during one of his hot-shooting spurts in the fourth quarter: silence, then a few light boos.It was just the kind of welcome he had hoped for in his return.Thomas keyed the decisive run against his former team, and the Phoenix Suns got contributions from all over to outlast the short-handed Sacramento Kings 115-106 on Friday night for their fifth straight win.Thomas attributed the reaction to a loyal fan base in Sacramento — some of whom wore his old No. 22 Kings jersey — that wants to see wins and took it as a sign of respect.It was nice for me, Thomas said. It probably wasnt too nice for them.In his first game back in Sacramento, Thomas led an 18-7 spurt to start the fourth quarter that put Phoenix up by 15. The former Kings fan favourite finished with 17 points, five assists and three rebounds in just 29 minutes.But he was hardly alone.Marcus Morris had 20 points and nine rebounds, Eric Bledsoe added 18 points and six assists, Markieff Morris scored 17 points and Goran Dragic finished with 16 points and six assists for the surging Suns.Were small a lot of times. We get hurt on the boards some times. But the guys play hard, Suns coach Jeff Hornacek said.Darren Collison scored 19 points, and Rudy Gay added 16 points and five assists for the Kings, who sorely missed DeMarcus Cousins inside. The franchise centre sat out with a stomach illness.Interim coach Tyrone Corbin said the illness is unrelated to the viral meningitis that sidelined Cousins for 10 games previously. Regardless of the issue, Sacramento has struggled without him.The Kings are 2-9 when Cousins hasnt played this season.Reggie Evans tried to make up for Cousins absence, going for 11 points and 16 rebounds, but the lack of Cousins left the middle open on both ends.The Suns shot 48.9 per cent, including 14 for 33 from 3-point range, pushing the pace and creating all kinds of space. Sacramento shot 44.1 per cent and 7 of 29 from beyond the arc.Thats who they are and they are going to shoot a lot of 3s, Corbin said. Unfortunately, they made a fair share of them tonight.The teams traded scores for the first three quarters in what was a sloppy but fast-pace contest most of the way.Thomas received a moderate round of applause — with some giving him a standing ovation — when he checked in during the first quarter, though he didnt do much at the start. Thomas, selected by Sacramento with the 60th and final pick of the 2011 draft, went to Phoenix in a sign-and-trade deal over the summer.As he so often did in Sacramento, the 5-foot-9 guard came up big in the biggest moments.Thomas found Marcus Morris for a 3-pointer and then made two layups between a free throw to open the fourth. He added a couple more dazzling plays and a layup that put Phoenix up 112-97 with 5:09 to play.Thomas scored nine of his 17 points in the final quarter.You could tell, Marcus Morris said, he had an extra hop in his step.TIP-INSSuns: Phoenix improved to 5-0 when it uses the starting lineup of Bledsoe, Dragic, P.J. Tucker, Markieff Morris and Alex Len.Kings: Sacramento started 9-5 this season and is 3-12 since. ... Reserves Ramon Sessions (strained lower back) and Ryan Hollins (personal reason) also sat out.RESPECT FOR MALONEThomas said he was surprised by the Kings firing Michael Malone as coach two weeks ago. Same as everybody elses reaction, like, Why? What else did you guys want? Thomas said. Its none of my business. I know thats the NBA. Nobodys job is guaranteed. It just (stinks) because hes such a great guy and a great coach. They had different plans.STOUDEMIRE SCOUTINGNew York Knicks big man Amare Stoudemire, wearing a black beanie and sunglasses, watched the game from a front-row baseline seat. The Knicks play in Sacramento on Saturday.UP NEXTSuns: At Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday.Kings: Host New York Knicks on Saturday. Cheap Air Max 95 Wholesale . In the Brewers six games this season, no starter has allowed more than three runs. "We see the guy in front of us do a great job and we want to do even better," Gallardo said after the Brewers beat the Red Sox 4-0 on Sunday, his second straight scoreless start. Authentic Air Max 95 . Rooneys latest piece of football genius lost in the furore which now stalks David Moyes, and the man who gave the Manchester United striker his start as a 16-year old at Goodison Park back in 2002. http://www.airmax95cheap.net/ . "I knew it was gone. I mean, I felt it," the 2012 NL Rookie of the Year said. "I havent felt like that in a while. I havent got extension on a ball in a pretty long time. Cheap Air Max 95 Free Shipping . A fully booked flight forced me to leave two hours later. After a nice meal in which I studied the stats of the Argo win, I prepared to leave the restaurant. As I was gathering my things to leave many large individuals began to walk up and wait for tables. Air Max 95 Cheap Sale . The Canadian defensive tackle suffered the injury on Monday and had tests done on Tuesday. He was a potential starter on the defensive line but head coach Mike OShea said he wasnt even thinking about the ratio when he got the news.CHICAGO -- The Portland Trail Blazers had dropped three straight games and appeared in danger of losing considerable playoff ground in the tough Western Conference before LaMarcus Aldridge returned to the lineup on Thursday. Two games later, the Blazers seemed to have turned things following a pair of comfortable wins, the latest a 91-74 victory over the Chicago Bulls on Friday night. Is the turnaround as easily explained as the return of an All-Star performer? Well, yeah, the Blazers say. "Other than us getting our best player back, which changes everything, I think our urgency is going up," Damian Lillard said. "After the loss at Orlando (on Tuesday), we realized, All right, its time to turn it around now. We cant wait and we cant have all of these lackadaisical efforts. "Everybodys got on the same page and, during these last two games, weve really defended and done everything together." Mo Williams scored 18 points to lead five Blazers in double figures. Lillard had 16 points, Nicolas Batum and Robin Lopez each had 13, Wesley Matthews had 11 and Thomas Robinson added 10. The Blazers got past the Bulls easily, despite a quiet night from Aldridge, who was playing just his second game after missing two weeks with a back injury. He had five points and 13 rebounds in 29 minutes after having 25 points and 16 rebounds in Atlanta. "His presence on the court puts pressure on everyone," Portland coach Terry Stotts said. "He does a lot more to help us win than just his field-goal percentage." No one in the Bulls locker room would disagree. "He is a load down there; a great player," Joakim Noah said. "You can tell when he is on the court, whether he scores or not. He changes their team. He is one of the best in the game." Carlos Boozer had 16 points and 12 rebounds in 24 minutes to lead Chicago. D.J. Augustin had 15, Taj Gibson 13 and Noah added 11 points and 10 rebounds. The Bulls, who had a chance to clinch a playoff spot with a win on their own, lost both games of the season series and have dropped 11 of 13 overall against Portland, including five of seven at the United Center. With the New York Knicks loss to the Phoenix Suns, the Bulls still managed to wrap up a playoff spot.dddddddddddd Before Friday, the Bulls had been 10-3 in their last 13 home games, averaging 96.8 points on 44.5 per cent shooting during that span. But it was apparent early that they wouldnt approach either of those marks in this one. "We were flat," Bulls coach Tom Thibodeau said. "They had something to do with that." Getting off to fast starts was one reason behind the Bulls recent home success, but they were cold at the start, going 8-of-23 (34.8 per cent) from the field in scoring 16 points in the first quarter. Minus Boozers 10 points on 5-of-10 shooting, the rest of the team managed just six points on 3-of-13 shooting. The Blazers had a 47-36 halftime lead and then took charge at the start of the third quarter, beginning the second half with a dunk by Lopez and a 3-pointer by Batum to make it 52-36. In all, Portland stretched the run to 15-2 for a 62-38 lead. The Bulls ended the third quarter on a mini-spurt -- including a three-point play on a dunk and foul by Gibson -- to trim the deficit to 73-58 entering the fourth quarter. The Bulls got the ball first in the final quarter and had a couple of inside looks on that initial possession, but came up empty. Lillard then essentially dashed any hopes of a huge rally with a 3-pointer at the other end to make it 76-58. The Bulls failed to score 80 points for the 11th time this season and are 0-11 in those games. "Our defence tonight was just an example of everybody being there for each other," Lopez said. "When you know there is someone behind you, it gives you the confidence to be aggressive." NOTES: Bulls G Derrick Rose, out for the season with a torn right meniscus, suffered the injury in the first game against the Blazers on Nov. 22 and had surgery three days later. ... Thibodeau was asked if he was taking part in the Bulls NCAA pool. "I didnt get a chance to participate," the coach said. "I was looking at that Quicken Loans one. I think I would have won that." That was the contest in which Warren Buffett offered $1 billion to anyone who could fill out a perfect bracket. No one made it through the third day without at least one game wrong. ... Portland entered with a 20-18 road record but was 2-7 in last nine. ' ' '