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New York • The moment happened in the first quarter of Utah's 114-109 win over the New York Knicks, the ultimate test of how well Gordon Hayward's broken finger had actually healed.

Utah's star small forward posted up against Knicks star Carmelo Anthony. He turned and shot a fadeaway. Whack! Anthony smacked at the basketball, but came down full force on Hayward's finger. After grimacing in pain, and pulling at his splint, Hayward calmly walked to the free-throw line and sank two shots. Then, he turned, ran down the Madison Square Garden floor, and smiled.

He was officially back.

"It felt great to be out there," Hayward deadpanned.

In what turned out to be Utah's fourth win, Hayward made his season debut on Sunday afternoon, scoring a team-high 28 points and grabbing five rebounds. He shot 6 for 17 overall from the field, missing several shots he normally puts home. He made all 14 of his foul shots. Beyond his scoring, his overall presence clearly made the difference for the Jazz against a hot-shooting New York team. Hayward was Utah's best player before he broke his finger in the preseason four weeks ago. He was certainly the best player on the floor in front of a sellout crowd at MSG.

"His return was huge," Jazz point guard George Hill said. "Not only offensively. But getting rebounds and playing defense. He made big plays for us all game."

The Jazz moved to 4-3 on the season, and did it behind a balanced effort and perhaps their best offensive performance of the year — no coincidence with Hayward in the lineup. They shot 50 percent from the field and got to the foul line 35 times, making 30 of them. They turned the ball over just 10 times, and they consistently put pressure on a Knicks defense that surrendered 78 points to Utah in the first three quarters.

That allowed the Jazz to take over for good in the fourth. With New York starting the final 12 minutes with its two stars — Anthony and Kristaps Porzingis — resting on the bench, Utah promptly went on a 7-0 run to turn an 80-78 deficit into an 85-80 advantage. The Jazz stretched the lead to 90-82 when Joe Johnson hit a 3-pointer that bounced off the rim, hit the top of the backboard and nestled softly into the hoop.

"It was huge," Johnson said. "Starting the fourth quarter with a bang got us the edge. We were able to maintain the lead for the whole fourth."

New York — fresh off a big Friday night road win over the Chicago Bulls — didn't go away. The Knicks, down by eight points, made a 5-0 run, culminating with a Courtney Lee 3-pointer that pulled them within 90-87, and forced Jazz coach Quin Snyder into a timeout.

The Garden was rocking at that point. There were still seven minutes remaining. Anthony was back into the game, and rested, and MSG sensed a comeback. But Hood hit a three. Then the Jazz forced a defensive stop. And then Hood hit another three to give Utah a 96-87 advantage with 5:54 remaining.

New York would draw no closer than five points (106-101) for the remainder of the game.

"I think Utah did a good job of executing the entire game," Knicks coach and former Jazz assistant Jeff Hornacek said. "They're very good. They're long, they can sit around in the lane area."

Utah, uneven offensively this season without Hayward, placed six players in double digits on Sunday. Hill was once again a force, scoring 23 points and handing out nine assists. He shot 8 for 12 from the field and didn't turn the ball over in 34 minutes.

Hood scored 18 points, 12 of them in the fourth quarter. Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert each scored 13 points, while Johnson scored 10 points off the bench.

Anthony and Porzingis led the Knicks with 28 points each. Derrick Rose scored 18 points and handed out eight assists. Utah will face the Philadelphia 76ers on Monday night.

tjones@sltrib.com Twitter: @tribjazz —

Storylines

R The Jazz start the fourth quarter on a 12-2 run, turning a deficit into a 90-82 lead.

• Utah puts six players in double figures.

• The Jazz move to 4-3 on the season.

More coverage

Strong finish • Utah's Rodney Hood scores 12 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter. > B5 Jazz notes • Forward Derrick Favors still finding his groove after knee injury. > B5