The Phoenix Suns (14-12) lost a two-game win streak against the Indiana Pacers (13-15) tonight at Footprint Center by a score of 120-111 in what is one of the final tune-ups to a huge Christmas Day matchup with the Denver Nuggets.

Tonight saw the return of Bradley Beal after a three-game absence – and both squads put forth strong efforts early on.

Indiana took a 32-29 lead after the first 12 minutes of action behind a balanced scoring effort that was spearheaded by 7 points from Andrew Nembhard.

A late surge from Phoenix – capped by a Royce O’Neale buzzer-beater – closed the half out as Indiana continued to lead by a score of 60-59.

The Pacers came out of half firing on all cylinders – to the tune of a a 37-point quarter which resulted in a 97-83 lead going into the final 12 minutes.

The Suns appeared to be mounting a bit of a comeback – as they worked the game down to a 9-point deficit with around 2 minutes left in the game – but a lack of defensive stops sealed the loss tonight.

The Suns appeared to be mounting a bit of a comeback – as they worked the game down to a 9-point deficit with around 2 minutes left in the game – but a lack of defensive stops sealed the loss tonight.