Jazz 101, Rockets 94
Part of me wishes the Jazz could head out for their upcoming five-game trip right now, just so we could get some evidence of whether their nine-game winning streak constitutes a real turnaround or false hope thanks to a favorable schedule.
The answer, at least for me, lies somewhere in the middle. The Jazz have done a commendable job of taking care of business and could have only the ninth double-digit winning streak in franchise history to show for it should they beat Denver on Friday.
But the Jazz have benefited from one of the craziest scheduling anomalies I've ever seen: The Denver game on Friday will mark the 12th time the Jazz have caught a team playing the second game of a back-to-back set since Jan. 7!
They beat Houston in such circumstances Wednesday, just like they beat the L.A. Lakers and New Orleans and Dallas and a host of other teams. The Jazz are 10-1 in the last two months against teams playing the second game of a back-to-back set.
They also have notched only two road victories - - against Minnesota and Golden State - - during their current streak. They are 11-17 on the road this season, which is even a little misleading since six of those victories have come at Minnesota, Memphis and Sacramento.
How many teams that currently have a winning record have the Jazz beaten on the road this season? Can you believe only one? That would be the 30-29 Detroit Pistons, who were beaten in double overtime by the Jazz back in December.
That said, if Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer play the way they did Wednesday, the Jazz are going to be difficult to beat. They dispatched the Rockets even with their bench scoring only 18 points and Paul Millsap playing 15 minutes because of foul trouble.
* * *
Of course, the Jazz still have to host Denver on Friday before hitting the road, and it's sort of one of their biggest games of the season. After trailing the Nuggets by six games as recently as Feb. 18, the Jazz are now only one game behind the division leaders.
With the Nuggets hosting Portland on Thursday, the Jazz with a victory at best could take a half-game lead over Denver and at worst trail by a half-game. Should the Nuggets win both ends of the back-to-back, they would own a 2 1-2-game lead over the Jazz.
It's hard to figure out what outcome a Jazz fan should root for Thursday. After careful study, I believe that a Portland victory better serves the Jazz's cause. This is all because of potential tiebreakers involving division records.
The Jazz have three losses in the Northwest - - and, no, they can't take back that loss at Oklahoma City - - Denver has two and Portland has four. If both Portland and the Jazz beat Denver, the Nuggets would then have four division losses.
With their two victories over Portland earlier this season, the Jazz are assured no worse than a split of the season series against the Trail Blazers. The same thing would be true with Denver if the Jazz could win Friday.
The second tiebreaker to determine playoff seeding is division record. This is why a third division loss for Denver, followed by a potential fourth the next night, would be the most advantageous outcome for the Jazz.
It gets overlooked, but the Jazz's 27-11 record within the Western Conference - - aided by a 19-1 mark at home - - is potentially huge if they end up in a tiebreaker situation with a team from outside the Northwest Division.
* * *
Remembering Ron Artest's altercation with Matt Harpring last season, I thought Houston coach Rick Adelman made a smart move (and probably didn't even know it) when he sat Artest only 25 seconds after Harpring came in to start the second quarter.
Of course, Artest's outburst last season with Sacramento might have been more contrived than we originally believed. He said as much after Wednesday's game.
"Unlike when I was in Sacramento, I had to get the crowd riled, all rowdy, just to make it a fun, entertaining game," Artest said. "When I come here, the Rockets are already entertaining."
* * *
Yao Ming expressed some frustration with fouling out after Wednesday's game, but I thought the calls were fair for the most part. If anything, Yao could have fouled out earlier when he made contact as Ronnie Brewer went up on a layup bid with 3:33 left.
Before that in the fourth quarter, Jazz coach Jerry Sloan could be seen motioning to referee Tom Washington to call Yao for going over the back after rebounds.
He was whistled for a really tough third foul in the third quarter when he went up pretty much completely vertically yet was called for a foul on Mehmet Okur. He lowered his shoulder into Okur, drawing his fourth personal with an offensive foul call.
When he was on the court, Yao caused the Jazz fits whether they double-teamed him or stayed home. Kyle Lowry hit a three-pointer and earned a trip to the foul line off a drive as Yao found him open when the Jazz went to double-team.
When they stayed home, Yao followed up his own miss for a three-point play. For only playing 30 minutes, Yao had an incredible line of 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five blocks.
--Ross Siler
The answer, at least for me, lies somewhere in the middle. The Jazz have done a commendable job of taking care of business and could have only the ninth double-digit winning streak in franchise history to show for it should they beat Denver on Friday.
But the Jazz have benefited from one of the craziest scheduling anomalies I've ever seen: The Denver game on Friday will mark the 12th time the Jazz have caught a team playing the second game of a back-to-back set since Jan. 7!
They beat Houston in such circumstances Wednesday, just like they beat the L.A. Lakers and New Orleans and Dallas and a host of other teams. The Jazz are 10-1 in the last two months against teams playing the second game of a back-to-back set.
They also have notched only two road victories - - against Minnesota and Golden State - - during their current streak. They are 11-17 on the road this season, which is even a little misleading since six of those victories have come at Minnesota, Memphis and Sacramento.
How many teams that currently have a winning record have the Jazz beaten on the road this season? Can you believe only one? That would be the 30-29 Detroit Pistons, who were beaten in double overtime by the Jazz back in December.
That said, if Deron Williams and Carlos Boozer play the way they did Wednesday, the Jazz are going to be difficult to beat. They dispatched the Rockets even with their bench scoring only 18 points and Paul Millsap playing 15 minutes because of foul trouble.
* * *
Of course, the Jazz still have to host Denver on Friday before hitting the road, and it's sort of one of their biggest games of the season. After trailing the Nuggets by six games as recently as Feb. 18, the Jazz are now only one game behind the division leaders.
With the Nuggets hosting Portland on Thursday, the Jazz with a victory at best could take a half-game lead over Denver and at worst trail by a half-game. Should the Nuggets win both ends of the back-to-back, they would own a 2 1-2-game lead over the Jazz.
It's hard to figure out what outcome a Jazz fan should root for Thursday. After careful study, I believe that a Portland victory better serves the Jazz's cause. This is all because of potential tiebreakers involving division records.
The Jazz have three losses in the Northwest - - and, no, they can't take back that loss at Oklahoma City - - Denver has two and Portland has four. If both Portland and the Jazz beat Denver, the Nuggets would then have four division losses.
With their two victories over Portland earlier this season, the Jazz are assured no worse than a split of the season series against the Trail Blazers. The same thing would be true with Denver if the Jazz could win Friday.
The second tiebreaker to determine playoff seeding is division record. This is why a third division loss for Denver, followed by a potential fourth the next night, would be the most advantageous outcome for the Jazz.
It gets overlooked, but the Jazz's 27-11 record within the Western Conference - - aided by a 19-1 mark at home - - is potentially huge if they end up in a tiebreaker situation with a team from outside the Northwest Division.
* * *
Remembering Ron Artest's altercation with Matt Harpring last season, I thought Houston coach Rick Adelman made a smart move (and probably didn't even know it) when he sat Artest only 25 seconds after Harpring came in to start the second quarter.
Of course, Artest's outburst last season with Sacramento might have been more contrived than we originally believed. He said as much after Wednesday's game.
"Unlike when I was in Sacramento, I had to get the crowd riled, all rowdy, just to make it a fun, entertaining game," Artest said. "When I come here, the Rockets are already entertaining."
* * *
Yao Ming expressed some frustration with fouling out after Wednesday's game, but I thought the calls were fair for the most part. If anything, Yao could have fouled out earlier when he made contact as Ronnie Brewer went up on a layup bid with 3:33 left.
Before that in the fourth quarter, Jazz coach Jerry Sloan could be seen motioning to referee Tom Washington to call Yao for going over the back after rebounds.
He was whistled for a really tough third foul in the third quarter when he went up pretty much completely vertically yet was called for a foul on Mehmet Okur. He lowered his shoulder into Okur, drawing his fourth personal with an offensive foul call.
When he was on the court, Yao caused the Jazz fits whether they double-teamed him or stayed home. Kyle Lowry hit a three-pointer and earned a trip to the foul line off a drive as Yao found him open when the Jazz went to double-team.
When they stayed home, Yao followed up his own miss for a three-point play. For only playing 30 minutes, Yao had an incredible line of 19 points, seven rebounds, six assists and five blocks.
--Ross Siler
12:36 AM
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