SUNS HAVEN'T SET YET PHOENIX FORCES GAME 7 WITH OVERTIME WIN PHOENIX 126, LAKERS 118.

Byline: ROSS SILER Staff Writer

While the Clippers wait and wonder about a Hallway Series that now might not happen, the Lakers will be playing for their season Saturday night in Phoenix.

The Suns finally got things right at the end of Game 6 and took a 126-118 overtime victory at Staples Center as the Lakers squandered the opportunity to win this Western Conference first round series at home.

Tim Thomas hit a 3-pointer with 6.3 seconds left in regulation and the Suns got their revenge in overtime for the two last-second shots Kobe Bryant hit against them in Game 4 on Sunday.

The Suns will have back the suspended guard Raja Bell for Saturday's Game 7 in Phoenix.

Only seven teams ever have come back from 3-1 down in a series in NBA history, but Phoenix will have the chance to be the eighth.

Phil Jackson teams won two Game 7s during his first five seasons as Lakers coach, in the 2000 Western Conference finals against Portland and the 2002 Western Conference finals against Sacramento. Jackson is a perfect 41-0 in series in which his team has held a lead.

None of those stats, however, seemed to matter after Tuesday. Bryant finished with 50 points, 36 in the second half and overtime, but Steve Nash had 32 points and 13 assists for the Suns. Thomas had 21 and Leandro Barbosa had 22.

Bryant hit a seemingly impossible shot with 3:53 left in overtime, double-clutching against Shawn Marion, then spinning and draining a fadeaway 17-footer to put the Lakers in front 107-105.

But Boris Diaw answered at the other end and Luke Walton had a shot in the lane rim out. Steve Nash and Marion hooked up on an alley-oop and Kwame Brown fumbled a pass to give the ball back to Phoenix.

Diaw scored to put the Suns up 113-109 with 2:33 remaining and the Lakers called timeout. Bryant missed in traffic out of the timeout and Thomas connected on a 3-pointer from the corner to make it a seven-point game.

It looked like the game would come down to one play in the fourth quarter, with Bryant connecting on a 3-pointer with the shot clock expiring and Shawn Marion giving chase.

Bryant squeezed off the shot from the left corner with 1:46 remaining to put the Lakers in front 103-102. He had missed five of six shots in the quarter but found just enough space on the move to hit the jumper.

Thomas missed an open 3-pointer at the other end for the Suns. Smush Parker was blocked by Diaw trying to take Nash into the post. Thomas again couldn't get a shot to fall and the Lakers called timeout leading with 42.1 seconds left.

Bryant made another sensational play, driving on Marion and banking in a shot to make it 105-102 with 29.3 seconds left. But Phoenix found a way to tie the game at the other end, even with a possession in which Nash nearly traveled and missed a 3-pointer.

Marion rebounded the miss and passed back out to Thomas, who drilled a 3-pointer from the top of the floor with 6.3 seconds left to make it 105-105. Kwame Brown was a step slow trying to rotate back out.

Bryant missed a 17-footer over Marion at the buzzer for the Lakers and the game went into overtime.

There were no repeats of Raja Bell's clothesline takedown of Bryant from the fourth quarter of Game 5. Suspended by the NBA for the game, Bell was not allowed in the arena, the Suns losing their primary defender against Bryant.

But Bryant did catch Leandro Barbosa, Bryant's replacement, in the mouth with an elbow in the first quarter. Barbosa needed four stitches to close the gash.

Brown, who struggled with foul trouble all night, made a huge play with 3:54 remaining in the fourth quarter, backing down Thomas and scoring as part of a three-point play.

But Diaw answered at the other end to tie the score 100-100.

Early in the fourth quarter, Lamar Odom made two strong moves in the post to beat Shawn Marion for baskets as the Lakers kept the game close, trailing 90-89 with 8:47 left.

Odom pushed in another shot against Diaw.

The Suns kept finding the mismatch for Nash, using their screen and roll plays to force Brown to defend their MVP point guard. Nash sank two jumpers as Phoenix took a 98-95 lead into the final five minutes.

Bryant scored 15 points in the third quarter as the Lakers came back from nine down to tie the score 83-83 on a Devean George 3-pointer. George connected on two 3-pointers during the rally and the Lakers finally got Bryant free from Phoenix's double-teams.

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CAPTION(S):

4 photos, 7 boxes

Photo:

(1 -- color) The Lakers' Kobe Bryant shows his dejection at the end of the first half of Thursday's game at Staples Center. Bryant scored 50 points, but it wasn't enough to keep Los Angeles from a loss in Game 6 of the first-round series.

Keith Birmingham/Staff Photographer

(2) Kobe Bryant recovers the ball in front of Phoenix's Shawn Marion during Game 6 on Thursday.

(3 -- color) no caption (Suns player)

(4) no caption (Steve Nash and Smush Parker)

Evan Yee/Staff Photographer

Box:

(1) STORY LINES

(2) HERO

(3) GOAT

(4) THEY SAID IT

(5) KEY STAT

(6) QUARTER BY QUARTER

(7) WESTERN CONFERENCE FIRST ROUND, BEST-OF-7 SERIES TIED 3-3