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Houston • Tyrone Corbin's message to the Jazz: Keep fighting. We're getting close, Corbin told his team. We're almost there.
But while Utah is making strides, it is also running out of time.
The Jazz fell 110-108 to the Houston Rockets on Sunday night at the Toyota Center.
The loss erased a thrilling late-game offensive barrage by Utah (36-34), which trailed by eight points with 2:09 to go and proceeded to drill four 3-pointers in the final 1:47.
It minimized another inspired effort from Jazz forward Paul Millsap, who returned after missing five consecutive contests due to left knee tendinitis to pour in a game-high 35 points on 12-of-18 shooting, grab 10 rebounds, dish out four assists and collect four blocks.
But the toughest blow was delivered to Utah's playoff hopes. The defeat pushed Utah further back in a chase for the eighth and final Western Conference postseason spot — a race that is only growing tighter as the regular season winds down.
The Jazz entered the contest in ninth place, trailing Memphis while leading Houston (37-34) and Phoenix. After the Rockets' Kevin Martin dropped in a team-high 34 points and sank all 18 of his free-throw attempts — 10 of which came in the last 37 seconds — Utah fell all the way to 11th, trailing all three teams and setting up a road game Monday against the Grizzlies as a near must-win. In addition, Houston and Phoenix hold tiebreakers over the Jazz, while Memphis has a two-game advantage with just 12 to go.
"You can't feel sorry for yourselves or you can't be content with where you are," Corbin said. "We can't think it's over — it's not over till it's over."
Corbin praised his team's fight, effort and general execution. But he took issue with the seven offensive rebounds Houston picked up during the final period. Meanwhile, everyone from Millsap to Devin Harris said moral victories simply do not exist during the final month of the season, since the Jazz will not enter full rebuilding mode as long as the team has a chance to play in the postseason.
"You're getting down to the nitty-gritty, and we've got to win games," said Millsap, who sank 5 of 6 field goal attempts and buried two 3s to record 17 points in the fourth quarter.
Allowing Houston's Martin and Kyle Lowry to combine for 36 points on 11-of-18 shooting in the first half did not aid Utah's chances. Neither did Lowry's triple-double (28 points, 11 rebounds, 10 assists), the Rockets' 41 free-throw attempts, or a 30-19 first-quarter deficit.
"Just a terrific win," Houston coach Rick Adelman said. "I don't have to say how good Kyle was. He was just unbelievable [Sunday]. The guys literally sucked it up and fought the whole game. … It was just a great win for our team."
And another tough, frustrating loss for Utah.
Millsap compared the Jazz to an old car. Utah was shaky at the start — adjusting to Millsap's return; still adapting to C.J. Miles in the starting lineup — and it took the team a while to hit the right gear. Once the Jazz got moving, they were fine. But as has been the case during the past two months, Utah's resilience and fight was ultimately trumped by a porous defense and too many mental errors.
"We made a lot of mistakes and still had a chance to win — a lot of little mistakes that cost us at the end," said Jazz center Al Jefferson, who scored 17 points and tied a season high with 19 rebounds, but was just 7 of 23 from the field.
Twitter: @tribjazz —
Storylines
R IN SHORT • The Jazz fall 110-108 to the Houston Rockets on Sunday on the road.
KEY STAT • Utah drops to 11th place in the Western Conference with the loss.
KEY MOMENT • Houston's Kevin Martin hits 10 free throws in the final 37 seconds. —
Jazz at Grizzlies
R At FedEx Forum; Memphis, Tenn.
Tipoff • 6 p.m.
TV • FSN Utah. Radio • 1320 AM, 1600 AM, 98.7 FM
Last meeting • Grizzlies, 110-99 (Jan. 7)
About the Jazz • Utah's rotation tightened Sunday, with only nine players entering the game. Jeremy Evans, Ronnie Price and Kyrylo Fesenko were available but did not play. … starters Al Jefferson and Devin Harris combined to shoot just 11 of 38 against the Rockets.
About the Grizzlies • Memphis is just 2-3 in its past five games and will likely play the rest of the season without star Rudy Gay, who is out with a shoulder injury. … Power forward Zach Randolph leads the Grizzlies in points (20.1) and rebounds (12.6). … Seven of Memphis' final 12 games are against teams with winning records. —
Read our Jazz Notes
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