Bryon Russell scored a season-high 19 points and Donyell Marshall added 17, 10 rebounds and nine assists as the Utah Jazz posted a 99-86 victory over the Celtics, who opened a four-game road trip on a sour note.
Boston came to the Delta Center with an Atlantic Division-leading 17-8 record that included a 5-0 mark against the Western Conference. The Celtics also had won six of their last eight on the road but had not ventured farther west than Chicago before opening a four-game western swing.
 John Stockton takes a Wednesday drive past Kenny Anderson. Kent Horner NBAE/Getty Images |
Russell, who had scored in double digits just four times this season, nailed a 3-pointer and a jumper as the Jazz closed the third quarter with 10 straight points to take a 72-63 lead.
"I am feeling a lot better and I'm happy with the team's performance," said Russell, who has been hampered by a pelvic injury. "We played well tonight as a team and that's how we've got to play all of the time."
Erick Strickland's 3-pointer with 2:48 left gave the Celtics their final lead, 63-62, before Russell nailed a 3-pointer 24 seconds later to put the Jazz ahead for good.
He drilled a long jumper with 1:56 to go and rookie Andrei Kirilenko made a pair of free throws before John Crotty closed the quarter with a 3-pointer.
Boston got no closer than six in the final period and failed in a bid for its first season sweep of Utah since 1987-88.
John Stockton scored 12 points and Crotty finished with 11 as Utah won for the third time in five games and moved within one game of .500 for the first time since it was 10-11 on December 10.
"It is the same old story for the Jazz -- we need everybody to play well," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "We have got to do everything we can. Every game is important, it doesn't matter who you play or what the situation is."
"Our bench did a great job," said Jazz forward Karl Malone, who scored 17 points. "Everybody came off that bench and had a hand. I love (Russell's) confidence. He's been like that since I've known him. He's not afraid to take the shot. All of the guys have to step up."
Greg Ostertag chipped in eight points, eight rebounds and six blocks off the bench as the Jazz held a 48-32 advantage on the boards.
"They've hurt us in the past on the glass," O'Brien said. "We don't match up well on the glass with them. They had 11 blocked shots, so when we went inside, these guys are making it difficult to get the ball in the basket."
Paul Pierce scored 28 points and Antoine Walker had 19, eight rebounds and six assists for the Celtics, who lost for just the third time in 15 games.
"It's pretty tough to defend those guys," Sloan said. "They can put the ball on the floor and shoot it out on the perimeter. Fortunately, we hit some shots and executed some plays down the stretch. I thought we just executed a little bit better to finish the game."
Boston shot just 39 percent (32-of-81) and made 13-of-30 3-pointers, led by Pierce, who was 4-of-7 from the arc.
"We are the top team in the East, so there is going to be a target on our back," Pierce said. "We just have to raise our level of play another notch because teams are going to come after us."
But the Celtics made just 9-of-11 free throws while the Jazz went to the line 27 times on their home floor, making 20 free throws.
Boston had an 18-17 lead after a sloppy first quarter, but Utah started the second period with a 14-3 run. Marshall scored six points during that stretch and two free throws by Russell gave the Jazz a 31-21 cushion with 6:56 left.
Pierce scored 10 points in the final 5:08 of the first half as the Celtics climbed within 43-40 at the break.
Walker sank a 3-pointer to give Boston a 52-49 lead less than four minutes into the third quarter, but Utah rebounded with nine straight points. John Stockton made two baskets during the run and Russell capped it with three free throws to put the Jazz in front, 58-52.
Boston rallied for a 60-60 tie as Strickland hit two 3-pointers during an 8-2 burst. He finished with 12 points off the bench.