Sawt Falasteen - Booker stars as Suns beat Heat to seal NBA playoff berth

Booker, back after being sidelined by Covid-19 protocols, scored a game-high 23 points, passed off nine assists, pulled down eight rebounds, made two steals and blocked two shots for the visitors, who improved to a league-best 53-13.

"I'm just trying to find my rhythm," Booker said. "I had a week off. I felt good. I was ready to get back at it."

The triumph was important to the Suns, who lost 123-100 to Miami at Phoenix on January 8.

"They came to our home court and kicked our ass so we wanted to make a statement here," Booker said.

Mikal Bridges added 21 points for Phoenix while Bahamas big man Deandre Ayton contributed 19 points and 10 rebounds. Duncan Robinson led Miami with 22 points.

The Suns stretched their lead in the Western Conference to 8.5 games over Memphis by dispatching the top club in the Eastern Conference, the Heat falling to 44-23.

Phoenix, which lost last year's NBA Finals to Milwaukee, improved to 22-0 this season when keeping an opponent under 100 points and became the first team to secure a post-season berth.

"The playoffs are upon us," Booker said. "We're looking forward to it. We don't want to fall short again."

I.Yassin--SF-PST