PHOENIX, (Reuters) – The Phoenix Suns turned up the  heat in the Western Conference finals by beating the Los  Angeles Lakers 118-109 in Game Three on Sunday. Outgunned in the first two games of the series, the Phoenix  defense stepped up while Amare Stoudemire delivered 42 points  and 11 rebounds to help the Suns close the gap in the  best-of-seven series to 2-1.

Point guard Steve Nash put up 17 points and 15 assists,  despite sustaining what could be a broken nose, but it was the  dogged Phoenix zone defense that did most to snap the Lakers’  eight-game playoff winning streak. “The nose is the least of my concerns,” Nash, who collided  with Derek Fisher late in the game, told reporters.

“We are happy to get ourselves back in a position to tie  this thing on Tuesday night.”

Game Four, which will also be played in Arizona, could have  a major bearing whether the widely-anticipated showdown between  Los Angeles and the Boston Celtics in the NBA Finals takes  place.

Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 36 points, 11 assists and  nine rebounds but the visitors made just nine of 32 three-point  attempts.

They were outscored 32-25 in the fourth quarter, when they  held a brief one-point lead with 8:47 remaining. The Suns  quickly responded with an 11-2 spurt and sprinted to the finish  line.

Center Robin Lopez gave Phoenix an unexpected lift with 20  points and Stoudemire was a steady force down the stretch as he  scored 29 of his total in the second half.

“(The zone) was the difference in them shooting 58 percent  or 48 percent (tonight),” Suns coach Alvin Gentry said of his  defense, which had shipped 252 points over the first two  games.   “For the most part all their shots were coming from the  outside and we did a good job with rotations.”

Pau Gasol had 23 points and nine rebounds, while Fisher  scored 18 for the Lakers.