PHOENIX — Celtics guard Avery Bradley began feeling ill after the Celtics’ win against the Raptors last Wednesday and spent parts of the next two days in a Boston-area hospital. He did not join the team on its flight to Arizona on Friday, but on Saturday he boarded a plane and flew here on his own, arriving just six hours before the Celtics would face the Suns.
“I know that I need to be here,’’ Bradley said. “These games are important. Every single game. Not saying the team couldn’t get it done without me, but I wanted to be a part of every single game.’’
Bradley’s presence and determination spoke to the urgency the Celtics are feeling as the regular season nears its end. On Saturday, Bradley set the tone with a strong first half, and then the Celtics withstood a furious Suns comeback from a 21-point hole, as Boston held on for a 102-99 win, its fourth in a row.
After a 20-footer by Bradley gave the Celtics a 98-91 lead with 2:46 left, the Suns responded with a 7-0 burst. Rookie Devin Booker drained a difficult fadeaway from the left baseline to pull his team within 98-97 with 1:16 remaining.
Bradley then attacked the basket but his layup attempt rolled off the rim. With 58 seconds left, though, Booker missed a jumper from the top of the key, and Evan Turner corralled the rebound.
At the other end, Isaiah Thomas’s 3-pointer rolled in and out and the Suns raced the other way. But Brandon Knight’s deep 3-pointer was an airball and went out of bounds. Phoenix fouled Marcus Smart, whose free throws gave Boston a 100-97 lead with 21.1 seconds left.
Following a timeout, Booker’s floater caromed off the rim, but he gathered his own rebound and scored with 15.4 seconds remaining. The Suns fouled Thomas, who made one of two free throws to make it 101-99. The Suns raced the other way, and just as it appeared Booker had a step, Turner recovered to block his shot from behind.
Marcus Smart made one of two free throws with 2.3 seconds left and the Suns were unable to get off a desperation 3-pointer.
Thomas had 28 points and 6 rebounds to lead the Celtics. Turner had 17 points, 11 rebounds, and 1 big block. Boston made 24 of 27 free throws.
Bradley set the tone just 38 seconds into the game, as he hit an 8-footer to give the Celtics an early lead. Although Boston then missed its next seven shots, the Celtics got into the free-throw bonus early in the opening period and seized control by going 11 for 11 from the line.
Kelly Olynyk came off the bench and hit a pair of 3-pointers in the final 70 seconds of the opening quarter, and Thomas banked in a layup just before the buzzer to give the Celtics a 35-22 lead.
The Celtics had found a good rhythm with their thriving second unit earlier this season, but injuries to OIynyk, Jae Crowder, and Jonas Jerebko complicated matters a bit, requiring Stevens to shuffle his lineups and rotations.
On Saturday, though, the Celtics got a spark from their bench. Evan Turner, a reserve who has been inserted into the starting lineup in place of Crowder, joined a second line that included Olynyk, Jerebko, Smart and Terry Rozier. With 3:37 left in the second quarter Turner completed a tough reverse layup, giving the Celtics a 52-36 lead.
When Bradley hit a 3-pointer with 3:11 left to make it 55-34, it looked like the Celtics would coast to a win. Phoenix shot just 36.6 percent from the field in the first half and committed 14 turnovers.
The Celtics stretched their lead to as many as 20 points in the third quarter before Phoenix surged back. A jumper and two free throws by Brandon Knight capped a 11-0 run and pulled the Suns within 68-60 with 6:30 left in the third period, and the run did not end there.
With 2:43 remaining rookie Booker drove along the baseline and threw down a dunk that pulled his team within 74-73. The 21-point lead had been almost completely erased.
The Celtics, as they have all season, then turned to Thomas, who went on a 7-0 run of his own to push Boston back in front by 8 points.
But the Celtics have had some issues collecting too many team fouls too quickly this season, and Saturday was another instance. The Celtics were in the penalty less than two minutes into the fourth quarter, making it more difficult for them to defend, and making every foul call more damaging.
The Celtics were not able to pull away, they also did just enough to keep the Suns at arm’s length for most of the fourth quarter. A 3-pointer by Jerebko gave Boston a 96-86 lead with 4:24 left before Phoenix responded with a quick burst, as a Booker drive made it 96-91.
Adam Himmelsbach can be reached at adam.himmelsbach@globe.com. Follow him on Twitter @adamhimmelsbach.
