SALT LAKE CITY -- Yes, Boozer was booed.
In his return to EnergySolutions Arena, Carlos Boozer, the polarizing former Jazz power forward-turned-Chicago Bull, was booed loudly each time he touched the ball during Wednesday's game.
In the end, however, perhaps fans should have saved some of their disdain for the Jazz themselves, who fell apart down the stretch and wound up with a 91-86 loss.
Indeed, Utah (31-23) put forth a worthwhile effort, fighting the Bulls (35-16) over all four quarters. But the Jazz missed 10 free throws, hitting just 52 percent from the foul line, and they committed 15 turnovers in the loss.
To make matters worse, their bench was outscored 25-5.
"It was a tough loss," Jazz All-Star point guard Deron Williams said. "Put it on me because at the end of the game I had the ball in my hands. I've got to make the plays to win the game."
Uncharacteristically, Williams turned the ball over twice with the game on the line.
"We had some turnovers that hurt us," coach Jerry Sloan said. "And (the Bulls) were able to get on top of the basket."
When Sloan uses the term "get on top of the basket" it can be translated to "able to make big plays on the offensive end."
And that's exactly what at least one of the Bulls did.
While Boozer was mostly a non-factor, point guard Derrick Rose was a handful, scoring a game-high 29 points on 11-of-26 shooting. He also added seven assists, a steal and only one turnover.
Boozer scored 14 points and had six rebounds for the Bulls, who shot only 40 percent from the field.
However, Chicago's players made the plays the Jazz's couldn't.
They got seven offensive rebounds during a critical stretch of the third quarter and despite poor shooting from the field, hit 77 percent from the foul line.
Ex-Jazzmen Ronnie Brewer and Kyle Korver each made a critical play in the closing minutes.
With the Jazz trailing 84-83, Korver hit a 3-pointer at the 2:16 mark. Later, with Utah trailing 89-86 in the final minute, Brewer swiped a Williams pass, then hit a pair of free throws after being fouled on his way to the basket.
"They played well," forward Andrei Kirilenko said. "We know Kyle can make 3s, he made a 3 at the end. We know Ronnie Brewer can steal the ball, he stole the ball in the end."
Williams finished the game with 11 points and 12 rebounds, but also had five turnovers.
Center Al Jefferson -- the man whom the Jazz brought in to replace Boozer on the roster -- had a team-high 26 points to go along with eight rebounds.
Paul Millsap -- the man who replaced Boozer in Utah's starting lineup -- finished with 20 points and 14 rebounds.
Kirilenko, meanwhile, had 13 points, 10 boards, two assists, two steals and four blocked shots.
Jefferson added three blocks for the Jazz, who finished with 10 altogether.
The Jazz led 23-21 at the end of the first quarter, but trailed 44-41 at the break.
Chicago had no offensive rebounds in the first half, but managed to grab seven in the third quarter as they outscored the Jazz 22-19.
Comments