The Roundup—Jazz 105, Heat 87

After blowing a late lead in New Orleans last night, the Jazz made sure they sealed the deal against Miami, surging to a big first-quarter lead then holding on for a 105-87 victory over the Heat on Wednesday night.

The Jazz went 13-for-20 from the field in the first quarter, taking a 33-16 lead. Miami went on several runs and got as close as seven midway through the third quarter, but Utah answered each time, usually with a 3-pointer.

Gordon Hayward led the Jazz with 29 points. He went 9-for-13 from the field (including 4-for-5 on threes) and 7-for-7 from the line, and he added six rebounds, seven assists and a block.

“I think we really picked up our energy [in the fourth quarter],” Hayward said. “We were a lot more active. Coach always talks about activity and action and helping out on the weak side, and for the most part—besides [Dwyane] Wade—we did a good job playing defense tonight.”

Um ... about Wade—he was awesome, and he carried the Heat all night. He scored 22 points in the first half while the rest of the team combined for 19. And when he left the game with 1:29 left in the fourth quarter, he had scored 42 of Miami’s 84 points.

Enes Kanter added 18 points for the Jazz, while Derrick Favors returned to the lineup after missing two games with an ankle injury and scored 11 points. Alec Burks finished with 12 points, and Danté Exum hit double figures for the second straight game with 10 points.

There was a huge disparity at the free-throw line. Seemingly every borderline call (and many that weren’t even close) went Miami’s way as the Heat piled up 40 free-throw attempts, hitting 29. The Jazz, meanwhile, went an efficient 21-for-24 from the line.

At one point, Miami had attempted 20 free throws and the Jazz had three. That’s right, three.

Miami struggled from the line, but on a night when things weren’t going the Heat’s way, they had plenty of chances to get free points and change the momentum. It’s hard to be competitive when things are so one-sided, and Utah was fortunate to pull this one out.

Hayward was the catalyst to Utah’s hot start. He had 13 first-quarter points on 4-for-5 shooting (including 2-for-2 on threes) and 3-for-3 from the line. Then, with Miami gaining steam down the stretch, he stepped back and drilled a contested 3-pointer as the shot clock expired to give the Jazz an 88-74 lead. That was the game-clincher for the Jazz.

The Jazz went 14-for-25 from beyond the arc, and almost every time Miami went on a run, a Jazz player drilled a three to stop the bleeding. Hood, Burke, Hayward and Exum each did that, and Kanter’s three midway through the third quarter was huge, pushing Utah’s lead back to 10 after Miami had cut the score to 62-55.

The Jazz didn’t block a shot until midway through the third quarter, but it was a big one as Favors rose up and took away what looked like a sure layup by Shawne Williams as the Heat were picking up momentum. Kanter hit a spinning layup on Utah’s ensuing possession to complete the four-point swing and give the Jazz a 12-point lead. 

Trevor Booker was ejected late in the first half for slamming the ball down and then saying something (which probably wasn’t very nice) to one of the referees. ... Burks also picked up a technical foul, his coming early in the third quarter, for slamming the ball down. ... With less than three minutes left in the game, Wade was forced into a rare five-second call thanks to tough defense by Hayward. This particular call happens when a player, in the frontcourt below the free-throw line extended, dribbles the ball with his back or side to the basket for more than five seconds.

The Jazz will stay on the road for a game Friday night against the Orlando Magic. Tipoff is set for 5 p.m. MT and the game will be televised on ROOT SPORTS.