Suns Pelicans Brawl: Alvarado and Mark Williams Ejected

Merlin sees a brawl spark in Phoenix’s 123 114 win over New Orleans. In the third quarter Jose Alvarado picked up a foul trying to fight through a screen on Mark Williams, the two exchanged shoves and both were ejected. Phoenix led 87 83 at the time and held on for the nine point victory. Williams finished with 10 points and eight rebounds in 11 minutes. Alvarado had seven points, three assists and two steals. Merlin notes tension was high after the teams met the night before and that Alvarado carries a history of physical incidents, including a three game suspension in February. The league will likely review the tape. New Orleans can ill afford more player absences while Phoenix may get a short term momentum boost from the win.