Phoenix digs out of 20-point hole to beat Sonics

Maybe those headbands the Suns wore as a nod to 40 years of the franchise’s past were wrapped too tight around their heads. Maybe they figured the 13 points they scored in the first quarter was in 1968 numbers and would be adjusted for inflation.

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Or maybe three days off and some hard New Year’s Eve celebrating left the Suns with a hangover that left them 20 points behind the 9-22 Seattle SuperSonics after one quarter Thursday and listening to a chorus of US Airways Center boos that cascaded down like the ball in Times Square.

But before Retro Night became A Nightmare on Jefferson Street, the Suns regrouped, made up all but two points of the stagger by halftime and posted a 104-96 win that will look a lot better on paper than it was fashioned on the floor.

Amaré Stoudemire tore up the Seattle middle with 34 points and 11 rebounds and Steve Nash added 17 points and 10 assists, but the Suns didn’t finish much better than they started — watching a 15-point lead melt down to four at 98-94 late before finally putting it away.

It was only the third time in the 40-year history of the Suns that Phoenix fell behind by 20 points on their home floor and rallied to win — and the second time in 20 years (March 15, 1988) that the Sonics gave back a 20-point lead in Phoenix and lost.

“(The game) was a late start, but we started at nine o’clock instead of 8:30,” said Phoenix coach Mike D’Antoni, who was able to smile about things afterward — because there was some good news.

The Suns won their fourth straight game while San Antonio lost in Denver, giving Phoenix a one-game lead over the Spurs for the best record in the Western Conference.

Rookie Kevin Durant had 28 points for the second time in as many meetings with Phoenix and ex-Sun Kurt Thomas added 14 points and 12 rebounds for Seattle, who scored only 63 points over the final three quarters.

The Suns had only one basket over the final eight minutes of the first quarter and looked worse than that . But after the second unit kept things from getting out of hand, the starters returned to finish off a 30-12 second quarter with a 25-10 run that inched them within a basket at intermission.

The Suns took control in the third quarter and appeared ready to run away when Shawn Marion’s 3-pointer gave them a 80-65 lead with 11 minutes left. But Durant and Earl Watson (20 points, eight assists) kept the Sonics coming and Jeff Green’s tip-in with 51.2 seconds left inched Seattle to within four at 98-94 before the Suns stiffened to open 2008 with a win.