How Devin Booker's Clutch Heroics Lifted Suns Upset vs Rockets

PHOENIX -- The Phoenix Suns pulled off their biggest win of the season so far with a 102-99 upset over the Houston Rockets Saturday night behind a monster fourth quarter from Devin Booker.

With the game tied at 93 with under five minutes to go, Booker (24 points) connected on four consecutive field goals, which included a personal 7-0 run to put Phoenix ahead 102-95 with 2:29 remaining.

This was ultimately enough for the Suns, who picked up their second straight win to improve to 3-5 on the year and while carrying over momentum from their previous game for the first time this season.

"Just anything to win at all costs. Team trusts me with the ball and still thinking about the ones I could've made, even later, but we'll take the win," Booker said of his fourth quarter performance after the game (via The Arizona Republic's Duane Rankin).

Devin Booker on a personal 7-0 run to put the Suns up 102-95 over the Rockets with 2:29 remaining pic.twitter.com/2HgkMsHe21
— Brendan Mau (@brendan_mau) November 8, 2026

The Suns started out the night on fire, going up by 19 early in the second quarter after shooting 16-for-21 (76.2%) from the field in the first quarter.

Phoenix then cooled off after this point and let the Rockets back into it but managed to continue to hang around as the Rockets struggled offensively throughout the night.

Booker's heroics in the clutch proved enough to give the Suns the huge win.

"He just got loose there. He got some screens, he's able to hit some tough ones too. He had a rainbow shot, he's a great shot maker," Rockets star and former Sun Kevin Durant said postgame of Booker.

"But look at his stats, 10-for-24, four turnovers, it's just those few late shots, and that's what he does. That's what he gets paid for. That's why he is a Hall of Famer."

Houston (7-3), which had won the last eight meetings between the teams, entered the game with the second-best offensive rating in the league, while Phoenix was 29th in defensive rating, but the Suns held the Rockets to a season-low 38.3% shooting from the field.

This could be a building block for a Suns team that wants to establish an identity centered around defense.

"We keep chipping away," Suns coach Jordan Ott said of the defense. "It's obviously not where we want to be defensively to start the season. The last two nights we took some steps, but it's going to be an ever-evolving process. We have to shift.

"We understand that we're a little undersized. We have to shift and then get to the ball and then rebound. In stretches, I thought that was some of our best defense of the year."

Next up for the Suns is a matchup against a red-hot San Antonio Spurs team that has won its last eight games Monday night.

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