Clarkson’s season-high 25 points lift Lakers over Suns

PHOENIX — Jordan Clarkson scored a season-high 25 points and the Los Angeles Lakers pulled away late to beat the Phoenix Suns, 100-93, on Monday night (Tuesday Manila time).

Devin Booker had 36 points, his second consecutive game of at least 35, for the Suns.

Brook Lopez and Kentavious Caldwell-Pope scored 15 apiece for the Lakers, who snapped a three-game losing streak and won in Phoenix for the second time this season.

Lakers rookie Lonzo Ball, coming off his first career triple-double on Saturday night, did not play in the fourth quarter, when the Lakers pulled out the victory. He had seven points on 3-of-10 shooting, five rebounds, five assists and four turnovers in 28 minutes.

Booker scored 22 in the first half en route to his sixth 30-point performance in the last 10 games. T.J. Warren added 21 and Dragan Bender finished with a career-high 15 for the Suns.

The score was tied 81-81 after Bender’s left-handed driving layup with 7:25 to play.

Los Angeles took control from there with a 10-2 run to go up 91-83 on Corey Brewer’s 3-pointer with 5:02 remaining. Phoenix, loser of six of its last seven, never got closer than six after that and Clarkson’s 3 made it 98-88 with 2:43 to go.

Phoenix scored the first nine points of the game and that was the biggest lead for either team through three quarters.

Neither team was up by more than five in the third. The Lakers scored the final six of the quarter, the last two on Clarkson’s reverse layup with 3.6 seconds to go to lead 74-73 entering the fourth.

Tip-ins

Lakers: Los Angeles beat the Suns for the third straight time, the first time that’s happened in four years. .. The Lakers won in Phoenix 132-130 in the second game of the season. Ball had 29 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists in that game.

Suns: Booker had his 26th career 30-point game, tying Steve Nash for 15th most in franchise history. ... In the first half, Bender was 3-for-3 from the field, the rest of Suns bench 0-for-12. ... Tyler Ulis made his second straight start at point guard but struggled, going 1 for 7 from the field with two assists and three turnovers. ... Rookie Josh Jackson shot 0 for 6 and committed three turnovers.