PHOENIX (AP) -- The Phoenix Suns have got it in high gear again,

just in time for the playoffs.

Amare Stoudemire scored 22 of his 38 points in a spectacular

third quarter and the Suns moved within a game of clinching home

court advantage throughout the playoffs with a 116-98 victory over

Sacramento on Saturday night.

"We had a good time tonight," Stoudemire said.

Combining thunderous, acrobatic dunks with outside jumpers,

Stoudemire made nine of 10 shots in the third, when the Suns opened

a 27-point lead en route to their fourth win in a row. His only

miss in the quarter was a 3-point try at the buzzer.

"That was us at our best," Steve Nash said. "Hopefully we can

have some of that in the playoffs, but at the same time be able to

grind it out because it's not always going to be like that."

Joe Johnson scored 22 points and Shawn Marion and Leandro

Barbosa added 17 apiece in the Suns' 61st victory of the season,

one shy of the franchise record. Phoenix leads San Antonio by two

games for the NBA's best record with two to play. One Suns' victory

or Spurs' loss will ensure Phoenix the best record in the league.

"Amare was dominant, obviously," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni

said. "We moved the ball well, which is key. The offense just

flowed better. You saw them looking for everybody. Now we need one

more win, and Monday needs to be the day."

The Suns play Denver Monday night in their final home game of

the regular season.

Stoudemire, Marion and Nash sat out the fourth quarter after the

Suns took a 99-73 lead after three.

Sacramento, which entered the game with a four-game winning

streak, was without Peja Stojakovic, who left Friday night's

victory over the Los Angeles Lakers with a strained left groin. The

Kings fell into a tie with Houston for the No. 5 spot in the

Western Conference, one game ahead of Denver.

Eddie House led Sacramento with 17 points, Mike Bibby added 16,

and Darius Songala had 11.

"I don't like getting embarrassed," Bibby said, "and I was

embarrassed tonight."

Quentin Richardson was back for the Suns after missing two games

with a sprained left ankle. After missing 13 shots in a row, dating

to before he was injured, he hit a 3-pointer that put Phoenix up

54-47 with 3:32 in the first half. Marion scored four points in the

final 30 seconds of the half to make it 62-52 at the break.

"The first half, when we had our chances there, we didn't keep

our focus in the transition defense at all," Sacramento coach Rick

Adelman said. "In the third quarter, we talked about coming out

and getting the first spurt, and they got it. They just came out

and finished the game."

After a few sputtering, if victorious performances, the Suns

turned it on in a third-quarter rush that buried the Kings in an

avalanche of fast-break dunks and outside shots. Stoudemire scored

the final nine points in a 25-6 outburst, with the last basket one

of the highlights of Phoenix's remarkable turnaround season.

On a fast break, Johnson brought the ball downcourt and passed

it beneath the basket to Nash. Nash barely touched it on a tip pass

high above the rim to Stoudemire, who caught it and slammed it home

one-handed to make it 89-63.

"That was pretty sweet," Stoudemire said. "He threw it up to

Seve, and Steve threw it up to me. I didn't he was throwing to be

honest with you, then I saw it float in the air for a second so I

went up and got it."

Marion said the play materialized over his head, and he almost

went up after the pass until he saw Stoudemire "coming out of

nowhere."

"That happens sometimes," Stoudemire said, "I've got a

tendency to jump over some guys' heads and throw it down."

Stoudemire's 19-footer boosted it to 94-67 and his 16-footer put

Phoenix up 96-69.

Nash called Stoudemire "up there with the greatest athletes the

game has ever seen. He's got big hands, he's tough and he's

improving his skills. It's a lot of fun to have him on our team."

If the Suns win their final two games, they will break the

franchise mark for best record of 62-20, set by the 1992-93 team

that made it to the NBA Finals. Saturday's victory tied Phoenix

with the 1979-80 Boston Celtics for the third-largest turnaround in

league history at 32 games. The Suns' 29-53 record last season was

the third-worst in franchise history.Game notes
Both teams were playing for the second night in a row. ...

Kings coach Rick Adelman and Suns coach Mike D'Antoni were

roommates as players with the Kansas City Kings. ... The teams meet

again in their regular-season finale Wednesday night. ... Adelman

said Stojakovic won't play the remaining two games of the regular

season. ... Sacramento needs to win one of its next two to top 50

victories for the fifth consecutive 50-win season.