The Utah Jazz return to the cozy confines of EnergySolutions Arena on Friday as they try and get a leg up on the Denver Nuggets in their Western Conference quarterfinals set.
Deron Williams scored 33 points to push the short-handed Jazz to a 114-111
victory over Denver on Monday, evening the series at a game apiece.
Williams was 7-of-14 from the floor, but a more impressive 16-of-18 from the
charity stripe, a tell-tale sign of the young, aggressive Jazz, who made 36-
of-47 free throws on the game.
Playing without Andrei Kirilenko (calf) and Mehmet Okur (Achilles), Utah
turned to C.J. Miles, who answered with 17 points and six assists, Paul
Millsap, who added 18 points off the bench, and mainstay Carlos Boozer, who
had his customary double-double with 20 points and 15 rebounds.
"This is a big win for us," Williams said. "Everything that is going on
injury-wise and nobody really giving us a shot. We just wanted to come out
here and put that to rest. We feel like we still have a great team that can
compete and we are really proud of how we played and battled tonight."
Carmelo Anthony scored 32 points for the Nuggets before fouling out late in
the fourth, Nene added 18 points and Chauncey Billups notched a double-double
with 17 points and 11 assists. Kenyon Martin added 15 points for the Nuggets.
"I think they were a lot more aggressive," Billups said. "I think they just
made an effort to step up and say, 'We are going to play with this effort and
make them beat us.' We just have to be more aggressive on both ends."
Okur suffered a ruptured left Achilles in Game 1 and is out for the playoffs
(three-to-six months total), while Kirilenko, who also missed 15 of the Jazz's
final 17 regular season games due to a series of calf injuries, flew to Los
Angeles this week to start a rehab program.
The Russian veteran, who averaged 11.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists,
1.43 steals and 1.22 blocks in 58 games this season, could possibly return for
the second round of the playoffs if the Jazz advance past Denver.
For Denver, Martin sat out practice on Thursday to rest his balky left knee as
a precaution. Meanwhile, lead assistant Adrian Dantley continues to lead the
team as head coach George Karl attempts to recover from aggressive treatment
for neck and throat cancer.
The Nuggets edged the Jazz for their second straight division title and earned
the fourth seed in the Western Conference. They're in the postseason for a
seventh straight year and recorded 50-plus wins for a third straight season.
Jerry Sloan's Jazz, who are the fifth seed, have made it to the playoffs four
consecutive years and have posted 50 or more victories in three out of the
last four campaigns. The Jazz have finished with a winning record four
straight seasons and a remarkable 23 times in the last 24 years.
This first-round playoff matchup marks the fourth time Utah and Denver have
collided in the postseason, with the Jazz holding a 2-1 edge in series
victories. Denver took three of four meetings with their Northwest rivals during the
regular season but the Jazz compiled a gaudy 32-9 mark at EnergySolutions
Arena in the regular season
stake: 9/10
picks: over
odds: 1.8
bookmaker: bet365
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