Phoenix, AZ (Sports Network) - Amare Stoudemire was perfect from the field in the third quarter, when he scored 18 of his game-high 28 points, leading Phoenix to a 126-111 win over the Memphis Grizzlies.
Steve Nash registered 11 points and 16 assists for the Suns, who have won four of their last five games overall and remained unbeaten in six home contests this season. Jason Richardson scored 20 for Phoenix, which has beaten the Grizzlies in 12 of the last 13 meetings.
The Suns, who became the first team in the league to reach 12 victories, finished the game shooting 61.9 percent. They have scored 100 or more in 32 consecutive home games and have won 15 in a row as the host going back to last season.
Zach Randolph scored 24 and had 13 rebounds for Memphis, which has lost two of three since a three-game winning streak. Rudy Gay chipped in 16 points in defeat.
It was an incredible third-quarter for the Suns shooting the ball as they went 17-of-20 from the floor and outscored the Grizzlies, 38-28, in the period. That included an 8-of-8 performance from Stoudemire. Phoenix went into the quarter already holding a 60-49 lead and methodically widened the margin going into the fourth. The Suns led by as many as 26 in the last quarter.
"They did make a lot of shots, but we didn't give a lot of resistance," said Memphis coach Lionel Hollins. "They're a very good team and they showed us why they're the number one team in the league. It seemed like in the third quarter they made every open shot they had. They got to the basket at will and we couldn't execute, like we were in mud."
The game was tied at 27 moving to the second and it was even at 47 with 3 1/2 minutes left in the half. That's when the Suns started to take over, as Stoudemire began the half-ending spurt with a layup and Richardson later trained a three-pointer. A dunk by Louis Amundson capped the quarter.
"In the first half Memphis came out and showed some guts out there and shot the ball particularly well and got offensive rebounds and got it going there for awhile," said Stoudemire. "So we needed to make sure we came out in the second half and limit their second chance points and get that win."
Game Notes: Leandro Barbosa scored 15, Channing Frye 14 and Grant Hill 12 for Phoenix...Sam Young and Jamaal Tinsley finished with 14 and 12 points, respectively, for Memphis...Randolph set a franchise record with 10 offensive rebounds. The previous high was nine by Lorenzen Wright against Portland on December 21, 2005...Nash had more assists than the entire Memphis (15) team.