Utah Jazz vs. Detroit Pistons, 11/21/09

Boozer, Kirilenko help Jazz beat Pistons

SALT LAKE CITY(AP) Andrei Kirilenko and the Utah Jazz outlasted the Detroit Pistons for their fourth straight victory.

Kirilenko scored six of his 22 points in overtime and the Jazz beat the Pistons 100-97 on Saturday night. Carlos Boozer scored 18 of his 22 points in the second half and overtime to help the Jazz escape a back-and-forth game that produced 17 lead changes and saw no lead larger than five points after halftime.

"It was a tough game for us," said Jazz guard Deron Williams, who finished with 11 assists. "We had to win it on the defensive end and that's what we did."

"I thought Andrei had a great game off the bench," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said. "Boozer made all these free throws and made some key baskets to help us win the ball game."

Boozer was 10 for 10 from the free-throw line and the Jazz capitalized on a large free-throw disparity. They shot 19 more and made 12 more than Detroit. Utah shot 75 percent from line and made its final eight, including all six in overtime.

"Defensively we did a nice job, especially at their house," Pistons coach John Kuester said, "but they got to the foul line 44 times to our 25. So that hurt."

Detroit's Ben Gordon scored 25 points, but missed a potential tying 3-pointer in the final second after two Kirilenko free throws put Utah ahead with 9.8 seconds remaining.

Detroit's Rodney Stuckey scored 18 points, and Charlie Villanueva had 17 points in the Pistons' fourth consecutive loss.

Detroit shot 45 percent from the field, but made just two of nine shots in overtime. The Pistons held a four-point lead after three quarters.

Paul Millsap missed a jumper at the buzzer in regulation after Gordon's two free throws tied it at 90 with 22.1 seconds left.

Utah dressed just nine players and was without starting center Mehmet Okur (flu).

Copyright 2009 by STATS LLC and Associated Press. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of STATS LLC and Associated Press is strictly prohibited

POSTGAME QUOTES Utah Jazz 100, Detroit Pistons 97 November 21, 2009

Notes: The Jazz has won the last nine games against Detroit as well as the last seven in Utah … Mehmet Okur sat out his third straight game due to flu-like symptoms and has missed four total games this season … Andrei Kirilenko needs three more blocked shots to tie Greg Ostertag for second in franchise history (1,253) … Utah is 4-0 when Kyrylo Fesenko starts this season … Utah shot a season-high 44 free-throw attempts and made a season-high 33 … This was Utah’s first overtime game of the season, the Jazz was 1-2 in overtime games last season….Andrei Kirilenko last doule-double was a 20-point, 12-rebound game vs. Indiana on 1/12/09.

Jerry Sloan – Head Coach (7-6 this season)
On the game
“I thought Andrei had a great game off the bench. He had 10 rebounds in the ballgame, had 22 points. Boozer made all these free throws and made some big key baskets to help us win the ballgame. A lot of people played well for us. They’re a tough team. They set a lot of screens. You don’t get a chance to get in the open court very often because they don’t turn the ball over a lot ordinarily. We were throwing the ball everywhere to start the game, and we finally did a little bit better job of handling the ball to finish up.”
On whether only having nine active players is catching up with them at all
“It shouldn’t. I don’t know why it would catch up; we’ve only played 12 games. If they’re going to be caught up, then they better get in better shape. It’s not college, and they’re not being red-shirted. I would assume they would try to get stronger. Players like to play, and it’s easier to play with less guys, I think, because they know they’re going to be on the floor a little bit longer, and they can play a little bit more relaxed.”

Andrei Kirilenko– Forward (22 Points, 10 Rebounds)
On being active in overtime
“When those kind of times happen it’s very important to bring some energy. Start running, because people are tired, people losing focus. In those kind of moments you can really get some easy layups. Find those positions, steal the ball, or get that extra rebound. Those little things always pay off for the result of the game.”

Deron Williams – Guard (14 points, 11 assists)
On the game
“It was a tough game for us. We just didn’t seem like we had a lot of energy throughout the whole game. We battled. It came down to defense, defensive possessions, we had to get some stops. I took a bad shot at the end of overtime there. We had to win it on the defensive end and that’s what we did.”

Carlos Boozer – Forward (22 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists)
On the game
“They’re a good team. They fight through it. They’ve got a couple of big time players out. For us we’ve got a couple of big time players out too. We made the right play at the right time in the fourth quarter and in overtime to have a chance to win. In overtime we did a good of executing and we won a big game.”
On his mid-range jumper
“They were either doubling the point (guard) or they were just showing us so hard I was just left wide open. I’m confident in my shot and I was just knocking them down.”
On the guarding the Pistons
“We keep the paint really tight, we control the paint, so this is what happened. We play really, really good defense, we were closing in really well. We worked really hard on the rebounds. So I think we did everything fine except in the fourth quarter we lost the control.”

Notes: Detroit has lost its last nine games against the Jazz as well as the last seven in Utah … The Pistons are in the midst of a season-long four-game losing streak …The Pistons fall to 1-5 against Western Conference opponents this season …The Pistons held the Jazz to an opponent season-low 15 points in the second quarter ... Detroit has the third-worst record of any team in the league at EnergySolutions Arena (2-15), only the Clippers and Hawks have a worse record in Utah’s current arena … This was Detroit’s first overtime game of the season …Detroit had a season-high in steals (11) … Detroit also allowed an opponent season high in steals (11)…Rodney Stuckey had a season-high five steals.

John Kuester – Head Coach (5-8 this season)
On the game
“I thought our guys did a real nice job other than the first quarter. We had some great effort. Defensively we did a nice job especially at their house, but they got to the foul line 44 times to our 25 so that hurt.”
On the Pistons guard play
“They did a good job but I think a number of people really did an outstanding job. Ben Wallace again was very effective, guys coming off the bench did a real nice job. Also it’s impressive to see how hard our guys fight. Talk about the back and forth battle in the back court, each team was very physical, it just went back and forth all night long. They have a great backcourt but our guys were willing to meet the challenge.”

Charlie Villanueva – Position [17 points, 8 rebounds] On Detroit’s intensity
“We played good basketball today; we concentrated moving the ball and played with a lot of energy. We outrebounded them I believe. You know, so the energy and effort was there. You’ve got to give them credit, I mean they played good.”

Will Bynum – Guard [16 points, 6 rebounds]
On the game
“All of them (losses) hurt. This one we were right there. I thought we shared the ball today. We executed the way we wanted to at times. Definitely I thought we were good enough to win. We just came up short.”
On being so close to the win
“We have to put it together for four quarters. I thought we did a great job tonight. It’s tough. I can’t speak for everyone. For me it’s tough whenever we lose. I am re-playing it over and over in my mind. It’s just tough, especially being so close against the great teams.”

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