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Sacramento, Calif. • There was a little more sunshine in the Utah Jazz's locker room on Sunday, and it wasn't just because of daylight saving time.
After enduring their most difficult stretch of the schedule, the Jazz have now notched back-to-back wins and can see the window to make the playoffs opening once again. Suddenly, frustration has been replaced by something else.
"I think right now we're just going out there and having fun," forward Derrick Favors said after the Jazz had downed the Kings 108-99 on Sunday evening. "I think in the past losing [seven out of eight games], we were kind of stressing, kind of panicking, but now we're going out there and having fun, just playing as a team."
The Jazz can thank Favors and a fast start against a futile Kings defense for ensuring they enjoyed themselves on the road Sunday.
With construction nearing competition on a new facility downtown, the Jazz (31-35) made their last trip ever to Sleep Train Arena. Early on, it looked like the Kings had already left the building. As the Sacramento defense slacked, Gordon Hayward knocked down three first-quarter triples and Favors stroked mid-range jumpers to build up a 36-18 cushion.
"We really came out ready to play," said Jazz coach Quin Snyder, whose team had dropped its first two meetings with Sacramento this season. "We didn't give them anything easy. The last couple times we played these guys, we got off to a bad start and got down early. It was exactly the opposite tonight."
Utah kept its opponent at arm's length for the next two quarters and, with nine minutes to play in the fourth, led by 21. Then the Jazz opened the door up for the Kings to come roaring back. The offense stagnated as the Jazz shot just 31.6 percent for the quarter. Meanwhile, seven turnovers let the Kings get out in transition. Sacramento had trimmed the lead to single digits with just over five minutes left on the clock and would get within five points in the game's final minute.
But Favors provided a key offensive board, a steal and four free throws in the final 60 seconds to help seal a win the Jazz desperately needed. The Jazz forward finished with 28 points and 14 rebounds as he battled with Sacramento star DeMarcus Cousins, who notched a game-high 31.
"I think he kind of took the matchup personally," Jazz point guard Shelvin Mack said. "Favors is one of the top big men in the league. I don't think he gets enough respect for that."
"He was just strong for us all night," said Hayward, who himself had 27 points. "He was a rock down there."
The victory brought the Jazz within two games of eighth-place Dallas, a team that has lost five straight and faces a brutal stretch of competition — including two meetings with the Warriors and Trail Blazers — over their next six games.
The Jazz host LeBron James and the Cavaliers on Monday night in Salt Lake, but won't face another team with a winning record until they visit the Houston Rockets on March 23.
"We realize these are games we have to win," Hayward said. "They're almost like now-or-never games. Each one is really important for us. We definitely feel the intensity. All the guys feel it. There's a heightened sense of focus by us."
Focused, but finally having fun again.
"Guys are just coming in and playing, not really thinking about it too much," said Mack, who had 14 points and eight assists. "Having some fun with it, having some moxie, having a little swag with it, having some confidence like when you shoot it, you know it's going in."
The Jazz have plenty to clean up after Sunday's win.
"We have to be better for sure," Hayward said. "But at the end of the day, a win is a win. We'll take all the wins we can get right now."
Because nothing would be more fun than making the playoffs.
Twitter: @tribjazz —
Jazz 108, Kings 99
FG FT Reb
Utah Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts
Hayward 39:07 9-19 5-5 1-4 3 4 27
Favors 37:30 10-16 8-10 5-14 4 2 28
Gobert 22:16 0-3 0-2 0-8 2 6 0
Mack 30:19 5-11 0-0 1-5 8 3 14
Hood 34:39 6-10 0-0 1-3 1 1 12
Johnson 11:23 2-3 0-0 1-1 1 0 6
Booker 25:20 3-10 4-4 2-8 1 1 10
Neto 7:39 1-2 1-1 0-0 2 0 3
Ingles 10:57 0-2 0-0 0-3 3 1 0
Lyles 10:48 1-3 0-0 0-1 0 3 3
Burke 10:02 2-3 0-0 0-0 1 1 5
Totals 240:00 39-82 18-22 11-47 26 22 108
Percentages: FG .476, FT .818. 3-Point Goals: 12-28, .429 (Mack 4-6, Hayward 4-9, Johnson 2-2, Burke 1-2, Lyles 1-2, Hood 0-1, Ingles 0-1, Neto 0-1, Booker 0-4). Team Rebounds: 8. Team Turnovers: 16 (16 PTS). Blocked Shots: 3 (Booker 2, Favors). Turnovers: 16 (Mack 5, Burke 2, Gobert 2, Hood 2, Favors, Hayward, Ingles, Johnson, Lyles). Steals: 8 (Favors 3, Mack 2, Booker, Hayward, Ingles). Technical Fouls: None.
FG FT Reb
Sac. Min M-A M-A O-T A PF Pts
Gay 30:33 3-9 0-0 2-4 2 1 6
Acy 10:49 1-2 0-0 0-1 0 2 2
Cousins 34:55 10-23 8-11 2-10 5 5 31
Rondo 35:52 3-9 0-0 1-4 9 3 7
Collison 32:21 5-9 4-4 0-2 5 3 14
Cauley-Stein 28:49 4-6 2-6 2-7 0 1 10
Belinelli 11:10 0-1 0-0 0-0 2 0 0
Casspi 26:06 8-12 0-0 1-3 0 2 20
Koufos 12:42 2-6 0-0 0-4 0 2 4
Curry 16:43 2-4 0-0 0-1 2 1 5
Totals 240:00 38-81 14-21 8-36 25 20 99
Percentages: FG .469, FT .667. 3-Point Goals: 9-21, .429 (Casspi 4-4, Cousins 3-6, Curry 1-2, Rondo 1-4, Gay 0-1, Collison 0-4). Team Rebounds: 6. Team Turnovers: 12 (22 PTS). Blocked Shots: 5 (Cousins 2, Koufos 2, Cauley-Stein). Turnovers: 10 (Rondo 5, Collison 2, Casspi, Cousins, Gay). Steals: 8 (Collison 2, Cousins 2, Belinelli, Casspi, Cauley-Stein, Curry). Technical Fouls: None.
Utah 36 25 23 24 — 108
Sacramento 18 27 24 30 — 99
Attendance • 17,023 Time • 2:19.
Officials • Bill Spooner, Matt Boland, Derek Richardson.