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Jazz Open Big Lead, Hold On For 120-111 Win Over Magic
Salt Lake City, UT (Sports Network) - Deron Williams nearly recorded a triple- double, totaling 32 points, 15 assists and eight rebounds in Utah's 120-111 victory over Orlando at EnergySolutions Arena.
The decision snapped the Magic's single-season franchise record eight-game road winning streak.
C.J. Miles logged 22 points off the bench for the Jazz, who were coming off a 24-point loss to the Lakers on Wednesday. Carlos Boozer checked in with 20 points and 14 rebounds, while Mehmet Okur ended with 14 and 11 in the win.
Vince Carter had a game-high 34 points for Orlando, which had won six straight coming into the game. Dwight Howard logged 18 points and 10 boards, while Matt Barnes and Ryan Anderson had 17 and 16 points, respectively, in defeat.
Utah erased a 62-52 deficit early in the third with 10 straight points in a game-altering third stanza. Okur ended the run with two free throws 3 1/2 minutes in, and he and Williams hit back-to-back three-pointers a little later for a 70-66 edge.
Williams was stellar during the quarter, capping it with an alley-oop toss to Miles and hitting a three-pointer at the buzzer for a 90-81 advantage.
The Jazz rode the momentum of the 38-21 third into the final stanza, and their 8-0 run, which Miles ended with a layup at the midway point, yielded a 105-89 advantage that was never seriously threatened.
"After the first 18 minutes they just played a lot harder, a lot more energy and a lot more focus than we did," Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy said. "They dominated us, we didn't run back, we didn't move on offense. We played with no energy."
The second half was a stark contrast than the first. Orlando made five three- pointers in the first quarter en route to a 35-22 advantage and led 60-52 at the break.
"We didn't get off to a very good start, but I thought our guys fought back and got back in the ballgame," Jazz head coach Jerry Sloan said. "We had a lot of good shots. We were able to execute well, when we executed, not to start the game but when we finally got going a little bit we executed and made some shots."
The Magic’s previous loss outside Orlando came November 8 at Oklahoma City...The loss kept the Magic from notching their best 22-game start in franchise history...The Magic made 14-of-35 from three-point range but had more than twice as many turnovers (13) than the Jazz (six).
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