Millsap helps Jazz hold off Wizards 92-88

[January 24, 2013]  SALT LAKE CITY (AP) -- Paul Millsap had 16 points and 15 rebounds to help the Utah Jazz hold off the Washington Wizards 92-88 on Wednesday night.

The Jazz led by 22 points in the second quarter and 15 entering the fourth, but the road-weary Wizards fought back to within two on Kevin Seraphin's jumper with 6:57 left.

Millsap's putback put Utah up by seven, but the Wizards came back again as Utah went cold. Millsap's 14-foot baseline jumper with 21 seconds left halted a nearly 3-minute scoreless stretch for the Jazz and bumped their lead to 90-84.

Martell Webster's third 3-pointer cut Utah's lead to 90-87 with 15 seconds left, but ex-Wizards guard Randy Foye made both free throws with 11 seconds remaining to seal it.

Millsap added two blocks and three steals. He led six Jazz players in double figures.

Webster led Washington with 15 points. John Wall added 14 in 27 minutes for the Wizards, who shot 36 percent. Emeka Okafor grabbed 17 rebounds.

Early on, the Wizards looked like a team ready to take an early flight home after a five-game road trip. They were shooting 23.8 percent after the first quarter, compared to 63.2 percent for the Jazz.

Utah, however, has a history of blowing leads and Wednesday was no different.

Gordon Hayward's three-point play put Utah up 47-25 with 5:58 left in the second.

Utah used a 22-6 run to open the second quarter, with the Jazz depth showing.

Enes Kanter made his first four shots for a 10-point quarter and Hayward attacked the rim with some fancy dribbling and footwork. He also made his first four shots.

The Wizards scored just six points in the first 6 minutes of the second. But the Jazz left the door open, shooting 1 for 11 over the final 6 minutes of the period. They still led 52-38 thanks to a 32-18 advantage on points in the paint.

Utah took a 73-58 lead into the fourth but the Wizards opened on a 14-2 run, capped by Trevor Ariza's 3-pointer with 8:57 left.

Millsap, frequently the subject of trade speculation, took over in the fourth.

He drew a charge from Wall and had a key steal against Nene with 3:24 left that resulted in a clear-path foul for Hayward, who sank both free throws.

Bradley Beal's basket off Utah's 14th turnover pulled Washington to 88-84 with 1:10 left.

NOTES: Utah Gov. Gary Herbert was in attendance, sitting next to Jazz President Randy Rigby. ... Kanter finished 4 of 4 and is 14 of 15 over Utah's last four games.

[Associated Press; By LYNN DeBRUIN]

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