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After Milwaukee All-Star Giannis Antetokounmpo sunk a half-court shot, Jazz coach Quin Snyder was out on the floor giving his All-Star a high five.
With seconds left to play in the first half, Jazz forward Gordon Hayward had made it a point to pick up his man in the backcourt, forcing Antetokounmpo to dribble and, as a result, fire off his shot after the halftime buzzer had sounded.
"It's a little thing," Snyder said of the play.
But do enough of those and you get yourself back in the win column — sometimes in a big, big way.
Hayward scored a game-high 27 points and Rudy Gobert scored 26 and grabbed 15 rebounds, as the Jazz cruised to a 104-88 win over the Bucks on Wednesday.
Asked before tipoff if his star big man would be "licking his chops" as he sized up Milwaukee's rail-thin rookie center Thon Maker, Snyder was diplomatic.
"There's no salivating," the coach had said, "no chops being licked."
But after two nights off, Gobert and the Jazz were rested and ready to feast on anybody the Bucks threw at them.
"They were dialed in," Snyder said afterward.
While the Jazz's stars shined, Milwaukee's All-Star hardly glimmered. Antetokounmpo will start for the Eastern Conference in the NBA's showcase game later this month, but on Wednesday night the Jazz turned him into a non-factor. Antetokounmpo went 2 for 10 from the floor, finishing with nine points, six rebounds and four assists.
"He's so good in transition and really good at getting into the paint," Hayward said. "We limited him in that. It was a team effort. We showed him bodies and made it seem like there wasn't anywhere to drive."
The Jazz had lost three of their past four games coming into Wednesday, as they closed out a difficult stretch of six games in nine nights. But after a few days to rest and relax, Utah looked like the NBA's second-rated defense again.
"It feels so much better out there tonight than some of the games in the past [week]," Hayward said.
Snyder was unimpressed with his squad's effort on the defensive side of the ball in the first quarter, but the Jazz found their footing in the second, holding Milwaukee to 16 points.
"We let them go in pretty easy in the first quarter," Gobert said, "and we had to lock in and do what we do."
Meanwhile in the second, Gobert scored 15 points, converting on four of his five looks from the field and knocking down seven of his eight free throws.
"He's really good for us when he's being a dynamic roller, catching the basketball and finishing above the rim," Hayward said of Gobert, adding that the center's presence in the paint opened up the weak side of the court for skip passes that led to a number of open looks from the corner.
But as the Jazz built up a double-digit lead in the second quarter, they also suffered a loss. Jazz shooting guard Rodney Hood hyperextended his right knee, the same injury that caused him to miss two weeks last month, with about 10 minutes to play in the period and did not return. Hood told a Tribune reporter after the game that he did not believe there was structural damage to the knee, though a precautionary MRI was planned for Thursday.
"Hopefully it's not serious," Snyder said.
Bucks forward Jabari Parker scored a team-high 17 points. Jazz veteran Joe Johnson finished with 14 points, six rebounds and five assists off the bench.
The Jazz (31-19) next play Saturday, when the host Kemba Walker and the Charlotte Hornets.
Twitter: @aaronfalk
Tribune reporter Tony Jones contributed to this story. —
Storylines
O Gordon Hayward and Rudy Gobert combined for 53 points as the Jazz improved to 31-19 on the season.
• Shooting guard Rodney Hood left the game in the second quarter with a hyperextended right knee and did not return.