Jazz-Cavaliers Preview

By MATT BECKER
Posted Mar 04 2012 4:14PM

The Utah Jazz can't seem to win away from Salt Lake City.

The Cleveland Cavaliers are struggling to win regardless of where they play.

The Jazz try to avoid losing seven straight road games for the first time in more than four years Monday night when they face the Cavaliers, losers of five in a row.

After winning back-to-back home contests over Houston and Miami, Utah (17-19) opened a season-high five-game trip with a 102-96 loss to Dallas on Saturday. Paul Millsap had 24 points and shot 11 of 17 for the Jazz, who trailed by as much as 23 in falling to 3-13 away from home.

"We felt like we tried our best to contain them as much as possible," said Millsap, second on the team with 15.7 points per game. "But they hit some tough shots that took us out of the game."

That has been an ongoing problem on the road for Utah, which is allowing an average of 103.4 points and 41.8 percent shooting from 3-point range in its last five.

The Jazz have lost six straight road games since a 98-88 win over Memphis on Feb. 12, their lone victory in their last 11 away from Salt Lake City. They haven't dropped seven consecutive road contests since Dec. 4-19, 2007.

A trip to Cleveland, however, might be what Utah needs to end its slide.

With a 113-105 victory over the Cavaliers on Jan. 10, the Jazz won their fourth straight in the series. Al Jefferson, averaging team highs of 18.5 points and 9.3 rebounds, had 30 points and 12 boards while Millsap made his first nine field-goal attempts and finished with 19 points.

The Cavaliers have been experiencing their own problems lately, suffering through their longest skid since last season's NBA-record 26-game losing streak.

Although the Cavs have had lopsided losses to New York and Chicago during their current slide, the other three defeats have come by a total of 11 points. In a 101-98 loss to Washington on Saturday, Cleveland had a chance to send the game to overtime but Anthony Parker missed a 3-pointer at the buzzer.

"We definitely need to get back on the right track," said point guard Kyrie Irving, averaging a team-high 18.5 points. "It's definitely frustrating going game to game. Going down to the wire and you can't close it out. We just have to figure it out and try to get a win."

Irving was back in the starting lineup Saturday and finished with 20 points and six assists a day after resting with an illness. He also scored 20 against Utah in January, while Antawn Jamison finished with 22 points and seven rebounds.

Jamison, second on the Cavs with 17.7 points per game, has scored at least 21 in six of his last seven contests.

Jefferson, Hayward lead Jazz past Cavs, 109-100

Posted Mar 05 2012 11:11PM

CLEVELAND (AP) The Utah Jazz finally found a way to win on the road.

The Cleveland Cavaliers would like to find a way to win, period.

Al Jefferson scored 25 points, Gordon Hayward added 23, and the Jazz snapped a six-game road losing streak with a 109-100 win on Monday night.

Cleveland has lost six straight and four in a row at home.

It's no surprise the two coaches had different points following the outcome.

"We needed a big road win, so we're going to hold onto this for the next day and a half," Utah coach Tyrone Corbin said.

A few feet down the hall, Cleveland coach Byron Scott had the opposite opinion.

"We are hoping sooner or later someone in the locker room gets ticked off besides me," he said. "That's what it boils down to."

Rookie Kyrie Irving, who led Cleveland with 22 points, agrees with his coach.

"I think we're all ticked off, not just him," he said. "It has to show on the court. We came out lackadaisical. I'm not surprised we lost the game."

Irving scored 21 points in the second half, including 13 in the third quarter, after missing all six of his shots in the first half.

Utah won for the fourth time away from home in 17 games. Jefferson was 9 for 16 from the field, had 13 rebounds and a career-high seven assists.

"This was a game we knew we had to win in order to stay in the playoff hunt," he said. "We need to keep playing like we played tonight. We played great defense and moved the ball."

Jefferson's assist total impressed his teammates more than his points and rebounds.

"I'm trying to get Al Jefferson in the skills challenge," joked guard Earl Watson. "Did you see him out there? That's why he's my client. I'm going viral with the campaign starting tomorrow."

Corbin's change in the starting lineup paid big dividends as well. Hayward started Utah's first 36 games, but was benched in favor of Raja Bell, who returned after missing six games with strained left adductor. Hayward responded by going 8 for 11 from the field in 28 minutes.

"I didn't take it as anything but he's trying to get the team wins," Hayward said. "I had the same mentality as before. It is a different feeling because it's a different part of the game, but I did it last year a little bit, so I'm trying to get back into it."

"I thought his energy was real good," Corbin said. "You never now how a guy could take (benching), but he took it in a positive manner and really went with it."

Utah point guard Devin Harris sprained his right knee in the third quarter and didn't return, but he expects to play Wednesday in Charlotte.

Utah led by 17 points late in the second quarter and was still ahead 85-70 in the final seconds of the third period. The Jazz were ahead by double figures for most of the fourth quarter until Cleveland closed the lead to 105-100 on Alonzo Gee's with 48 seconds remaining.

Utah didn't covert on its next possession, but Ryan Hollins missed two free throws with 12.5 seconds remaining. The Jazz put the game away at the foul line.

Utah finished the first half with a 22-8 run to take a 56-41 lead into the locker room. Leading 34-33, the Jazz scored 10 straight points and took control in the final 8:46 of the period. Josh Howard scored six points, while Hayward and Watson hit 3-pointers.

Cleveland was 3 for 16 from the field in the quarter. The final basket came on Gee's 3-pointer with 4:36 remaining.

Slow starts have been a problem during Cleveland's losing streak and Scott doesn't have an answer.

"You have to ask the guys in the locker room," he said. "I don't know."

Scott obviously wants to see a better effort throughout the game.

"I thought in the last five or six minutes we played with what I call a sense of urgency, but that's not good enough," he said.

Irving didn't score until he hit a free throw on a technical foul with 1:31 remaining in the second quarter. He missed all six of his field goal attempts. Irving's first basket came on a jumper at the 11:01 mark of the third quarter. He was back in the starting lineup for Saturday's 101-98 loss in Washington and finished with 20 points and six assists a day after resting with an illness.

"I feel great," Irving said. "I'm pretty good health-wise. It was tough being out and trying to get better, but I feel fine."

NOTES: The Jazz hadn't won on the road since a 98-88 victory over Memphis on Feb. 12. Utah hasn't dropped seven consecutive road contests since Dec. 4-19, 2007. ...Bell scored two points in 21 minutes in his first game since Feb. 19.Cleveland visits Denver on Wednesday and Oklahoma City on Friday. Six of the next nine games are on the road. ... Hollins and Gee made their second straight starts after Scott shook up his lineup Saturday. C Semih Erden didn't play for the second straight game.

Notebook: Jazz 109, Cavaliers 100

Posted Monday March 5, 2012 11:59PM

By Brian Dulik, for NBA.com

THE FACTS: Center Al Jefferson collected game highs of 25 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists, leading the Utah Jazz to a 109-100 victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers. Shooting guard Gordon Hayward added 23 points and five assists off the bench for the Jazz, who built a 17-point lead en route to snapping their six-game road losing streak. Point guard Kyrie Irving and power forward Antawn Jamison scored 22 points apiece for the Cavaliers, who have lost four straight home games and six in a row overall. Utah point guard Devin Harris exited in the third quarter with a sprained right knee and did not return.

QUOTABLE: "This was a game we knew we had to win in order to stay in the playoff hunt. Now, we need to keep playing like we played tonight. Our defense was great and we moved the ball really well, but it is only one game."
-- Jefferson

THE STAT: Despite coming off the bench for the first time in 2011-2012, Hayward matched his season-best scoring performance in just 28 minutes. The second-year pro from Butler shot 8-for-11 from the field, 2-for-3 on 3-pointers, and 5-for-5 from the foul line. Hayward even converted a soft alley-oop on a pass from Earl Watson. "I was able to get more touches and run in transition and use my athleticism out there tonight," he said. "It was a different feeling because it was a different part of the game, but I had the same mentality. We were just out there playing."

TURNING POINT: After the Cavaliers pulled within 34-33 early in the second quarter on a layup by shooting guard Daniel Gibson, Utah rattled off 10 straight points to take command. The Jazz would extend that sequence into a 22-6 run -- fueled by six points from small forward Josh Howard and five from Hayward -- to take their largest lead at 56-39 with 51 seconds left in the first half. "A the beginning of the game, we were just so-so, but the second quarter was even worse," said Cleveland coach Byron Scott, whose team went 5:35 without making a basket.

QUOTABLE II: "They just had the will. They outworked us, definitely. We came out going through the motions, and to win a basketball game, you've got to come out for 48 minutes and play hard."
-- Cavaliers power forward Tristan Thompson

HOT: With Jefferson leading the way, the Jazz decisively won the rebounding battle 46-30. Power forward Paul Millsap added nine boards, while Howard and Favors each had five. ... Jefferson's seven assists were a career high. ... Utah swept its two-game season series with the Cavaliers. ... Irving scored 21 of his 22 points in the second half, shooting 10-for-13 on field goals. The top overall pick in the NBA Draft also had four assists and zero turnovers in 32 minutes. ... Jamison dished out a team-high and season-best six assists.

NOT: Jazz shooting guard Raja Bell had two points, three turnovers and one technical foul in his return from a six-game absence with a strained left adductor. ... Utah center Enes Kanter shot 1-for-6 and picked up three fouls in eight minutes. ... NBA Sprite Slam Dunk Contest winner Jeremy Evans only logged 50 seconds for the Jazz. ... Cavaliers starting center Ryan Hollins had three points and four boards in 28 minutes. ... Thompson missed five of his six field goal attempts -- all coming under the hoop -- and went 1-for-3 at the foul line.

QUOTABLE III: "Tonight was one of those games that you're hoping that -- sooner or later -- someone in the locker room starts getting (expletive) off besides me. That's what it boils down to. We can't keep playing this way."
-- Scott

GOOD MOVE: Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said he shifted Hayward to a bench role so he could "get the ball into his hands more with the second group." The strategy worked brilliantly as Hayward ignited Utah's substitutes, while giving valued veteran Bell the chance to start. "I thought Gordon's energy was real good," Corbin said. "You never know how a guy will take (being taken out of the starting lineup), but he took it in a positive manner and really went with it. I really liked what I saw."

BAD MOVE: Utah's Watson jokingly vowed that he would get Jefferson into next year's Taco Bell Skills Challenge at NBA All-Star weekend, based on his seven-assist outing. "Did you see him out there? That's why he's my client," Watson said. "I'm going viral with my campaign starting tomorrow." ... Scott again called out his team following a decisive home loss, saying, "You have to ask the guys in the locker room. We weren't aggressive on both ends of the floor."

NOTABLE: Irving announced after the game that he will not play for Australia in the upcoming Summer Olympics. The 19-year-old was born in Melbourne while his father Drederick was playing professional basketball there, giving him dual citizenship. Irving said he was given assurances that his former coach at Duke, Mike Krzyzewski, will remain in charge of Team USA for the 2016 Games in Rio, which was the deciding factor in bypassing this opportunity. ... Harris said he hoped to play Wednesday when the Jazz travel to Charlotte. "I just tweaked my MCL (medial collateral ligament) a little bit," he said. "I'll just rest it, and hopefully that will take care of it and I'll be good to go."

UP NEXT: For the Jazz, Wednesday @ Charlotte, Friday @ Philadelphia, Saturday @ Chicago. For the Cavaliers, Wednesday @ Denver, Friday @ Oklahoma City, Sunday vs. Houston.

• Jazz: Carroll
• Cavaliers: Eyenga, Varejao

• Jazz: Bell
• Cavaliers: --

• Lead Changes: 7
• Times Tied: 4

• Arena: Quicken Loans Arena, Cleveland, OH
• Officials: #10 Ron Garretson, #31 Scott Wall, #33 Zach Zarba
• Attendance: 13190
• Duration: 2:09