Jazz 92, Toronto 88
For as ugly a game as Wednesday's was, at least it came down to a final shot. Then again, maybe the three-pointer T.J. Ford heaved in the closing seconds was a fitting end to a game where neither team could do a lot right.
There was a lot about that last shot for Raptors' fans to second guess. After Deron Williams hit two free throws to make it 91-88 with 17 seconds left, the Raptors opted not to call timeout and Ford brought up the ball.
Toronto coach Sam Mitchell said: "With one timeout and 17 seconds, we're down by 3, you would like to see us penetrate and get a quick two if possible and if they help and we can kick it out for the three, kick it out for the three."
It looked like Ford, who hit a three-pointer seconds earlier, wanted to shoot a three-pointer the whole way. The Raptors had Jason Kapono and Anthony Parker on the floor, yet the shot went to Ford, who finished 1-for-6 from three-point range for the night.
Ford also had missed a three with 1:16 left that could have put the Raptors in the lead. The Jazz wound up playing the last shot perfectly, with Mehmet Okur showing hard as Kris Humphries screened Williams.
Williams did his part as well, furiously recovering and leaping to contest Ford. Twice, Ford rose for shots only to bail out and pass off to Humphries. He got the ball back a third time and fired an awkward three-pointer over Okur.
The Jazz also made 13 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter to 2 of 2 for the Raptors. Okur hit a huge three with 5:15 left to keep the Jazz ahead 80-74 after Parker had nailed a three for Toronto.
Once again, the Jazz also caught a team sleeping on an inbounds play. Williams made eye contact with Carlos Boozer, slipped into the lane and got a layup with 55.7 seconds left. As Boozer noted, the Jazz are getting a basket a game at least like that.
* * *
Andrei Kirilenko's passing has been truly remarkable (9.8 assists the last four games) and the third quarter might have been his most impressive display yet. Kirilenko started the quarter by lobbing the perfect alley-oop to Okur for a layup.
He later found Okur for a three-pointer with a pass that sailed from one side of the court to the opposite corner. And Kirilenko hit Gordan Giricek cutting off an inbounds play as part of the Jazz's 10-2 run to end the quarter.
In the third quarter alone, Kirilenko had six assists. It was appropriate that he finished the quarter with someone looking for him, as Jason Hart found Kirilenko for a dunk that gave the Jazz a 64-59 lead.
Kirilenko made only 1 of 6 shots in the game but found a way to more than contribute. That's been his mind-set all season: If his shooting is off, Kirilenko will focus on rebounding, passing or defense. His passing has been brilliant.
"We have enough scorers on the team," Kirilenko said. "We have enough forces, from the starting five, off the bench, so sometimes you need to assist that. Just forget about scoring. Just try to get open, play your game, but kind of help them to be better and help them to be hot.
"I think when you play this way, everybody appreciate it. They feel like they're in the game. That's why almost everybody on the floor look good. That's important. That's why the team looking good."
* * *
Hart made a smart play late in the third quarter as Kirilenko went to the floor after an offensive rebound. With the Raptors trying to tie up Kirilenko for a jump ball, Hart ran to the referee and yelled for a 20-second timeout.
The Jazz were able to keep possession and got a layup as Giricek cut off an inbounds play. In a game decided by four points, the little things like that most definitely do matter.
--Ross Siler
There was a lot about that last shot for Raptors' fans to second guess. After Deron Williams hit two free throws to make it 91-88 with 17 seconds left, the Raptors opted not to call timeout and Ford brought up the ball.
Toronto coach Sam Mitchell said: "With one timeout and 17 seconds, we're down by 3, you would like to see us penetrate and get a quick two if possible and if they help and we can kick it out for the three, kick it out for the three."
It looked like Ford, who hit a three-pointer seconds earlier, wanted to shoot a three-pointer the whole way. The Raptors had Jason Kapono and Anthony Parker on the floor, yet the shot went to Ford, who finished 1-for-6 from three-point range for the night.
Ford also had missed a three with 1:16 left that could have put the Raptors in the lead. The Jazz wound up playing the last shot perfectly, with Mehmet Okur showing hard as Kris Humphries screened Williams.
Williams did his part as well, furiously recovering and leaping to contest Ford. Twice, Ford rose for shots only to bail out and pass off to Humphries. He got the ball back a third time and fired an awkward three-pointer over Okur.
The Jazz also made 13 of 15 free throws in the fourth quarter to 2 of 2 for the Raptors. Okur hit a huge three with 5:15 left to keep the Jazz ahead 80-74 after Parker had nailed a three for Toronto.
Once again, the Jazz also caught a team sleeping on an inbounds play. Williams made eye contact with Carlos Boozer, slipped into the lane and got a layup with 55.7 seconds left. As Boozer noted, the Jazz are getting a basket a game at least like that.
* * *
Andrei Kirilenko's passing has been truly remarkable (9.8 assists the last four games) and the third quarter might have been his most impressive display yet. Kirilenko started the quarter by lobbing the perfect alley-oop to Okur for a layup.
He later found Okur for a three-pointer with a pass that sailed from one side of the court to the opposite corner. And Kirilenko hit Gordan Giricek cutting off an inbounds play as part of the Jazz's 10-2 run to end the quarter.
In the third quarter alone, Kirilenko had six assists. It was appropriate that he finished the quarter with someone looking for him, as Jason Hart found Kirilenko for a dunk that gave the Jazz a 64-59 lead.
Kirilenko made only 1 of 6 shots in the game but found a way to more than contribute. That's been his mind-set all season: If his shooting is off, Kirilenko will focus on rebounding, passing or defense. His passing has been brilliant.
"We have enough scorers on the team," Kirilenko said. "We have enough forces, from the starting five, off the bench, so sometimes you need to assist that. Just forget about scoring. Just try to get open, play your game, but kind of help them to be better and help them to be hot.
"I think when you play this way, everybody appreciate it. They feel like they're in the game. That's why almost everybody on the floor look good. That's important. That's why the team looking good."
* * *
Hart made a smart play late in the third quarter as Kirilenko went to the floor after an offensive rebound. With the Raptors trying to tie up Kirilenko for a jump ball, Hart ran to the referee and yelled for a 20-second timeout.
The Jazz were able to keep possession and got a layup as Giricek cut off an inbounds play. In a game decided by four points, the little things like that most definitely do matter.
--Ross Siler
12:11 AM
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