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There was independence and equality. Self reliance and sacrifice. Moments when each of the Jazz's five starters stood solo on a stage and separately glowed. But more numerous were the instances when they combined forces, setting screens, zipping passes and sinking shots.

Utah downed the New Jersey Nets 98-88 Wednesday night at EnergySolutions Arena before a crowd of 19,314. And with each of the Jazz's starters scoring at least 15 points, the outing at times displayed the smoothest offensive performance the team's first five has produced since a new season began.

"The ball was moving a lot," said Utah forward Paul Millsap, who scored 19 points and collected a co-game high 15 rebounds. "Not one guy or two guys were just pounding the ball. Guys were moving, setting screens and helping each other on offense. And that's what we need."

The Jazz (8-4) got it. Utah dished out 19 assists on 33 made field goals while committing just seven turnovers. And the Jazz's starting five of Deron Williams (team-high 23 points), Raja Bell, Andrei Kirilenko, Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson racked up 88 points, combining for 89.7 percent of the team's scoring output.

Bell best captured Utah's streamlined efficiency. Breaking out of a seasonlong slump and shrugging off a strained left adductor, the veteran guard and emerging team leader who was a game-time decision poured in a season-high 15 points.

Bell said rhythm, in-the-moment reads and trust are starting to develop with a synced-up Jazz first unit. He pointed out an over-the-head flip pass from Jefferson that smoothly found his hands following a backdoor cut as proof that Utah is uniting.

"That kind of stuff is good for us," Bell said. "He knew I was there and he made a great pass, and I was able to find Paul. And when you see stuff like that starting to happen, you know that you're starting to click a bit."

The Nets (4-7) failed to chime. New Jersey was held to 37.6 percent (32 of 85) shooting from the floor and 19 percent (4 of 21) behind the 3-point line. In addition, the Nets committed 15 turnovers compared to just 11 assists. The sputtering movement offset New Jersey's domination on the board — the Nets outrebounded Utah 57-44, led by 15 from Brook Lopez.

Anthony Morrow topped New Jersey with 24 points.

"We couldn't drop it in the ocean tonight," Nets coach Avery Johnson said.

Meanwhile, the Jazz bounced back from a late-game home defeat to Oklahoma City on Monday to win their eighth contest in 10 attempts. Utah also improved to 3-2 at ESA, and will play 10 of its next 12 games on its home court. The Jazz lead the Northwest Division by a half game over the Thunder.

While Bell was the biggest beneficiary of the Utah's smooth roll, Jefferson continued to take the largest steps forward. The team's premier addition during the offseason acknowledged that he was thinking too much earlier in the year as he attempted to fit in with his new team, which resulted in a "brain freeze." But as Utah has converged, Jefferson has relaxed. He has scored in double digits in all but two of the Jazz's 12 games. And by simply playing a role in Utah's offense rather than attempting to star, Big Al is finding a new, comfortable home.

Jefferson said his eyes bulged when he picked up the statistics sheet after the buzzer, immediately noticing that his four co-stars put up nearly equal numbers. Then Jefferson spent a portion of his postgame interview handing out accolades.

"It's getting better and better," Jefferson said. "Things are starting to look a lot clearer to me."

Briefly • Jazz guard C.J. Miles strained his lower back midway through the second quarter and did not return to action. He is day to day.

bsmith@sltrib.comTwitter: tribjazz —

Storylines

R In short • The Jazz bounce back to down the New Jersey Nets 98-88 Wednesday night at Energy Solutions Arena.

Key stat • All five of Utah's starters reach double figures in scoring, led by Deron Williams' team-high 23 points.

Key moment • Up 53-47 at halftime, the Jazz begin the third quarter with a 12-6 run.