Chris Paul collected 18 points and nine assists to lift the visiting Phoenix Suns to a 100-92 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday afternoon in Game 4 of their Western Conference first-round series.

Devin Booker and Jae Crowder each scored 17 points and DeAndre Ayton recorded 14 points and 17 rebounds for the Suns, who evened their best-of-seven series with Los Angeles at two wins apiece. The teams reconvene in Phoenix on Tuesday for Game 5.

“Like a runaway train.” 🚂 🚂 pic.twitter.com/pIYFuqNBAk

— Los Angeles Lakers (@Lakers) May 30, 2021

LeBron James had 25 points and 12 rebounds for the Lakers, who saw Anthony Davis exit the contest with a strained left groin following a drive to the basket with 48.3 seconds left in the second quarter. Davis made just 2 of 9 shots for six points before departing.

James threw down a thunderous dunk to give the Lakers a 48-44 lead with three minutes remaining in the second quarter before the Suns answered with a spirited 10-2 surge to close the half. Mikal Bridges drained a pair of 3-pointers during the latter run, with one coming after Davis was unable to get back in the play following his injury.

LeBron vs the Suns with No AD #Lakers pic.twitter.com/3axL5YT0U6

— 𝙋𝙡𝙖𝙮🚫𝙛𝙛𝘽𝙧𝙤𝙣 (@Play0ffBron) May 30, 2021

Phoenix exploited Davis’ absence to begin the third quarter, outscoring Los Angeles by a 27-15 margin to take an 81-65 lead. Ayton scored three baskets on the interior early in the third while Paul recorded eight points in the quarter.

Marc Gasol drained his third 3-pointer and James sank a free throw to trim Phoenix’s lead to 95-88 with 2:40 left in the fourth quarter. Crowder stopped the momentum by drilling a corner 3-pointer with 1:23 to play.

"Defense wasn't our problem, we held them to 100 points…" @kylekuzma with @LakersReporter on how the #Lakers' approach changed when AD left the game at halftime. pic.twitter.com/30Pgxmp1j9

— Spectrum SportsNet (@SpectrumSN) May 30, 2021

Phoenix answered a 12-2 run by Los Angeles to begin the second quarter with an 18-4 spurt of its own to secure a 43-40 advantage. Crowder, who sank a pair of 3-pointers to highlight the Suns’ surge, had made just 2 of 20 attempts from beyond the arc in the first three games of the series.

Los Angeles’ Kentavious Caldwell-Pope did not play due to a left quad contusion he sustained in the third quarter of a 109-95 win over Phoenix on Thursday.