This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah Jazz practiced late Thursday morning before heading to Los Angeles for what could be a pivotal game against the Lakers.The Jazz, who have won four straight, can sweep the regular-season series from L.A. for the first time in franchise history with a victory Friday night at Staples Center."It would mean a lot," said Paul Millsap. "I'd [like] to be a part of it."At 23-19, Utah is a season-high four games over .500.The Jazz are two games behind Denver for sixth place in the West and two games ahead of Portland and Houston, which are tied for eighth.Utah leads the struggling Lakers, who own the fourth-worst record in the West, by six games.The Jazz have also clinched the head-to-head tiebreaker against Los Angeles, meaning a victory at Staples Center would realistically put the Lakers in an eight-game hole if they want to overtake Utah."We can't really worry about what's going on with anybody else," Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin said. "The talent that's on that team, you would think at some point they are going to get it figured out. You just don't want it to be against you."