EnergySolutions Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah, is home to the Utah Jazz who will be receiving the Los Angeles Lakers Friday evening. Since nothing else has stopped the charging Utah Jazz, maybe the schedule can do it. With its franchise-record start at 11-1 and growing, Utah now embarks on one of the most difficult stretches of the season.
The Utah Jazz look to extend their winning streak to eight games and maintain their perfect home record when they meet Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday. Utah, 11-1 is off to the best start in franchise history after an outstanding 110-101 victory at Sacramento on Wednesday. The Jazz trailed by 21 points in the third quarter and outscored the Kings 39-17 in the fourth to come away with their seventh straight win.
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Utah spotted Sacramento a 21-point lead which they did not take advantage of. For the third straight game the Jazz have trailed by at least 16 points in the second half, and once again they have come roaring back. This time they did it by outscoring the Kings 27-6 over the final eight minutes to win their seventh straight game at Arco Arena.
The Jazz improved to 11-1 on the season, and this win may have been the most improbable. Shareef Abdur-Rahim's three-point play to open the second half opened a 58-37 advantage for the Kings, and even when Sacramento guard Mike Bibby left with a knee bruise, the Kings' lead appeared safe.
Not so. Carlos Boozer and Derek Fisher scored 10 points apiece in the fourth quarter, and when Mehmet Okur hit his first three-pointer in six attempts with 1:48 to play, the Jazz held the lead (101-99) for the first time since the game was a minute old. Boozer finished with 32 points, 13 rebounds and five assists, while Deron Williams chipped in 20 points and 13 assists.
The Jazz, who are 6-0 at home, have trailed entering the fourth quarter in each of their last three games. They came back from an 84-73 deficit in a 120-117 overtime win over Phoenix on Saturday and a 77-71 deficit two days later in a 101-96 victory over Toronto.
Bryant was just as good a finisher as the Jazz in his last game. The Lakers star scored 10 of his season-high 40 points in the final 5:38 to lead his team to a 105-101 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday.
One game after Bryant was criticized by coach Phil Jackson for his 5-of-14 shooting in a win over Chicago on Sunday, he made 15-of-18 foul shots and committed only one turnover against the Clippers as the 8-3 Lakers won a season-high fourth in a row.
His production helped the Lakers overcome an uneven performance from Lamar Odom, who made 6-of-18 shots and 4-of-10 free throws for 18 points.
Utah forward Andrei Kirilenko has missed five straight games with a sprained ankle. The Jazz have gone 14-40 without him the last two seasons, but are 5-0 this year. Boozer has picked up the slack in his absence, averaging 23.8 points on 66.7 percent shooting. He's scored 67 points in his last two games and leads five players averaging in double figures for the Jazz. Point guard Deron Williams is second on the team with 18.3 points per game and second in the NBA in assists with 9.3 a contest. Utah has won four of the last five match ups at home.
This time though the Lakers are due, ok, ok… I’ll admit I love the +5 road dog. The game should go over 204½, tight but it should be just over.
