This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
At a certain point of Utah's 117-114 overtime win against the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night, the Jazz threw out about every aesthetically pleasing aspect to basketball.
At a certain point, it became all about survival.
The Jazz figured out a way to survive 21 turnovers. They found a way to survive Jason Terry's 3-pointer in regulation that forced overtime. They figured out a way to survive James Harden scoring a game-high 42 points. They found a way to survive surrendering 41 free-throw attempts to the Rockets, and one of Rudy Gobert's worst games this season.
And when they did that, made official when Terry's jumper rimmed out at the overtime buzzer, the Jazz had perhaps their biggest win of the season. Rodney Hood's reaction at the horn served as an indicator to what he and his teammates were feeling at the moment.
He exhaled.
"We just gutted it out," Hood said. "We kept playing and we got to the next play. We turned the ball over a lot in the first half and then we found a way to settle down. It was a 48-minute game and we reminded ourselves of that. We hit some big shots, we went on a run and we pulled it out."
Hood, Gordon Hayward and Derrick Favors were the headliners who carried the Jazz before an announced 18,132 at Vivint Smart Home Arena. But the Jazz on this night received contributions that most would've thought unlikely when the game begun.
Trey Burke, left wondering about his role when Utah traded for Shelvin Mack, scored 15 points off the bench, allowing the Jazz to rally from a fourth quarter deficit. Chris Johnson scored four points, but his hustle and defense made a big difference. Mack, a starter for the first time, scored a season-high 17 points. And even though he struggled running the offense, turning the ball over six times, he hit a huge floater over Dwight Howard with 1:36 remaining in overtime for a 112-109 lead.
"I just wanted to mix it up a little bit," Mack said. "I had missed a few wide open jumpers, and I knew it wasn't falling, so I went to the basket. I knew I had to get it high because Dwight was there."
In a game featuring playoff intensity, the Jazz never trailed in overtime, although Houston had its opportunities to lead. Utah never found a way to stop Harden, who was 16-of-30 shooting from the field. Howard was a monster in the middle, scoring 13 points and grabbing 16 rebounds.
But Hayward, Hood and Favors matched the Rockets on seemingly every shot. Hayward scored 28 points, grabbed seven rebounds and handed out five assists. Favors scored 19 points and grabbed 12 rebounds. Hood scored 18 and made two gargantuan 3-pointers down the stretch, one over Howard and one over Harden.
"I think we all just found a way to make an impact and to help our team," Favors said. "We played hard. We really wanted this one."
The Jazz are back at .500 at 28-28 on the season. More importantly, with the San Antonio Spurs coming to town on Thursday, Utah is back in the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.
The Jazz led by as much as 34-23 in the first half, but eventually there were seven ties and 12 lead changes in a game where Utah found a way to survive.
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Storylines
R Gordon Hayward scores his team-high 28 points on seven shots from the field. He went 13 of 15 from the free-throw line.
• Rodney Hood scored 18 points, five of them coming in overtime.