NBA Standings 2012: Phoenix Suns Falls To No. 10 Spot In West

The Phoenix Suns probably got deal a crucial playoff blow when they fell back into tenth place in the West after a tough loss to the Memphis Grizzlies. Phoenix sits a game-and-a-half outside the eighth seed now, so they're far from being out of it, but they now have a team in-between them fighting for that spot as well.

The Utah Jazz retook the nine spot by beating the Houston Rockets in Houston, inserting them a half-game ahead of Phoenix. Utah only trails Denver for the eight spot by one game and Dallas and Houston by a game-and-a-half. The sixth and the tenth seeds are separated by a grand total of two games, meaning there's plenty of time to shuffle the bottom of the Western Conference Playoffs.

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Rudy Gay's 32 Propels Memphis Grizzlies To 104-93 Win Over Phoenix Suns

With the Phooenix Suns on a crucial road trip and needing to win as much as they can to get into the top eight of the Western Conference, faced the current number five seed Memphis Grizzlies Wednesday night. The Suns fell behind early and then fought their way into the game, but ran out of gas late as the Grizzlies came away with a 104-93 win behind Rudy Gay's 32 points.

It was a game in which Grant Hill's defense was sorely missed. Jared Dudley had the defensive assignment and was unable to contain him. It also affected his offense as well. Dudley only scored two points on 1-6 shooting.

The defense allowed 32 first quarter points and had to play catch-up the rest of the game. In the fourth quarter, behind the second unit, the Suns were able to come back and tie the game. But the starters came back in and the Grizz pulled away.

Sebastian Telfair had another solid game, being a pest defensively and providing tons of energy. He finished seven points and eight assists.

However, it was the starters that struggled on the court. Along with Dudley's two points, Channing Frye only added five. The combined +/- of the starting unit was -78. The bench? +23.

The loss, combined by a Denver Nuggets win, pushes the Suns two games behind Denver for the eighth and final playoff spot.

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