This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Warriors would have preferred Beverly Hills to the Wasatch Mountains, spending their free nights on Sunset Boulevard rather than Temple Square.
But while they may not care for the Salt Lake City nightlife, they can respect how lively things tend to get on game nights.
"I expect it to be a hostile environment," Golden State forward Draymond Green said. "It always is. They cheer pretty loud for their team. Obviously with a few things that went on this past week, it will probably be a bit hostile."
After several Warriors told ESPN this week they would have preferred a second-round matchup with Los Angeles over Utah, the Jazz have printed up T-shirts featuring the word "nightlife". On the court, meanwhile, they hope the fans in Salt Lake City can help keep this semifinal alive.
The Jazz have been on the road for nearly a week now. They'll return to Salt Lake City for the first time since leaving for Game 7 of their first-round series with the Clippers.
"It seems like it's been a while since we've been home," Jazz forward Gordon Hayward said. "So definitely excited to play in front of our fans. I know they'll be excited to have us, and we're going to need them. They'll be really important for us. They always bring us a lot of energy."
The Jazz, down 0-2 in the series, won't be bringing back any Ws from Oracle Arena, but the Jazz hope they've got a little bit of momentum — or as much as can be expected after a pair of double-digit defeats in the Bay — heading into Game 3 against Golden State.
Minutes after his team's second double-digit victory of the series, Warriors coach Mike Brown was asked about the "easy" win.
He started laughing.
"I'm going to switch seats with you next game. Then you let me know that you thought that was easy," he told the reporter. "… That was a tough game for us. What it shows us is that Utah has some confidence, and they're going to be even more confident playing at home in front of their crowd."
The Warriors punched first and hardest Thursday night, jumping out to a 33-15 lead after one quarter. The Jazz responded by outscoring Golden State 89-82 the rest of the way.
"We played well for the rest of the game, besides that first quarter, so hopefully it gives us a little momentum," forward Derrick Favors said. "… A loss is still a loss, but we feel good, especially going back to our place."
Jazz forward Boris Diaw, a veteran of the playoffs, says he doesn't believe a series truly has started until the road team wins a game. To that end, the Jazz will hope they can delay things for a little while longer.
Utah will be encouraged by Hayward's 33-point performance in Game 2 and hopeful that point guard George Hill will be able to return to the lineup after missing Thursday's game with soreness in his left big toe.
"We've played well in patches of these games. We just have to be more consistent over 48 minutes because of how explosive these guys are," forward Joe Ingles said. "We're excited obviously to go home and play in front our fans, and we're confident we can get a win at home."
Twitter: @aaronfalk