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Washington • Jazz rookie guard Gordon Hayward was technically dealing with just a sinus infection.

But Hayward, who was inactive Monday during Utah's 108-101 loss to the Washington Wizards, said after the game that his illness was a little more serious than it originally appeared.

He woke up in the morning struggling to breathe, and later coughed up blood.

Still, Hayward believes that his infection is only a 24-hour bug, and hopes to be able to play Wednesday versus New Jersey.

"It was the weirdest thing," Hayward said.

The bigger they are …

Jazz center Al Jefferson suffered a thunderous fall midway through the fourth quarter after converting a big-time dunk and being fouled by Washington's Yi Jianlian.

Jefferson said that he injured his "buttocks," adding that he would likely feel much worse Tuesday than he did after the game.

"My legs came from under me," Jefferson said. "That's why I don't like dunking."

Special day

Utah guard Ronnie Price said he was overwhelmingly proud to play in the nation's capital on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Price would have liked to have toured some of the sites made famous by the civil rights icon. But with the Jazz barely rolling through the District of Columbia before the team headed north to face the Nets, he had to file the idea away.

"You can't say enough about how great Dr. Martin Luther King was; the message that he put out," Price said. "He's a very special person to me and to a lot of people."

Slow start

Three Utah starters began the game especially slow. Andrei Kirilenko, Paul Millsap and Raja Bell combined for just seven first-half points on 3-of-12 shooting.

The trio rebounded during the second half as the Jazz took a temporary 45-43 third-quarter lead, and then pulled within 101-98 after Kirilenko sank a free throw with 1:26 to go in the contest.

But Deron Williams and Jefferson were the only two Utah starters who had strong games, while Millsap and Bell combined to shoot just 6 of 21 from the field.

Lewis' late run

Washington forward Rashard Lewis was almost invisible during the first half, failing to record a point in 16:33.

But he stepped up after halftime and torched the Jazz during the third quarter, pouring in 13 points on 4-of-6 shooting while sinking two 3-pointers.

Utah coach Jerry Sloan acknowledged that the 6-foot-10 Lewis was a tough matchup for the height-challenged Jazz.

The Wizards "move him to the four and three," Sloan said. "He made six or eight points in that one stretch when we were zoning, and that's always a concern you have." —

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