|
 Win.
In comeback fashion, on the road even.
Shooting guard Jordan Clarkson scored a game-high 22 points and the
short-handed Lakers rallied to beat the Utah Jazz 100-97 on
Wednesday night at EnergySolutions Arena.
"We played really well," Lakers power forward Carlos Boozer said.
"They got on a little bit of a roll and got up 12 or 13 and our guys
woke up and started playing better."
The Lakers used a 31-19 fourth quarter to surprise the home team,
which was riding high after consecutive impressive wins over
Portland and San Antonio. Los Angeles (15-41) won its second
straight game after ending a seven-game losing streak.
Center Jordan Hill, guard Wayne Ellington and center Robert Sacre
each sank two free throws in the final 19 seconds to help the Lakers
hold on.
"I thought we kept our composure," Lakers coach Byron Scott said. "I
thought our guys did a really good job of our press and our zone
tonight. ... We've got a bunch of resilient guys. They just kept
playing and kept giving us an opportunity."
 Small forward Gordon Hayward scored a team-high 20 points for Utah,
which dropped to 21-35 after winning four of its previous five
games.
Hayward had six of the Jazz's 21 turnovers that the Lakers converted
into 22 points.
Jazz coach Quin Snyder didn't mince words when it came to describing
his team's sloppy play.
"It (was) a lack of toughness, a lack of precision, being
weak-minded and looking for someone to blame and not taking
responsibility for someone knocking the ball out of your hands,"
Snyder said. "It's an NBA game. People are going to be physical. It
just can't be that easy to give up the ball."
Power forward Derrick Favors had 18 points and nine rebounds, and
center Rudy Gobert totaled 16 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked
shots for Utah.
The Lakers, who trailed by as many as 13 points, caught up to the
lackadaisical Jazz with 4:37 remaining when Hill tied it at 88 with
a dunk. Clarkson then put the Lakers ahead for good with four
minutes remaining on another fast break.
Hill finished with 16 points and five rebounds. Clarkson hit 10 of
16 shots from the field and added four rebounds, three assists and
two steals.
Boozer, who played in Utah from 2004 to 2010, contributed 14 points
with six rebounds and three steals for the Lakers.
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Los Angeles won despite continuing to be plagued by injuries.
Already without Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash and Julius Randle, the
Lakers didn't have the services of Nick Young (knee) or Ronnie Price
(season-ending elbow surgery).
Missed free throws and missed shots equaled a missed opportunity for
the Jazz, who were looking for their first three-game winning streak
of the season.
Hayward hit two free throws with 13.7 remaining and Favors trimmed
the lead to one with two foul shots with 2.2 seconds left, but the
Lakers responded each time.
Utah made only 22 of 34 free throws while shooting 46.6 percent from
the floor. L.A. hit 18 of 21 free throws.
"It was just a mental game," said Millsap, the younger brother of
All-Star Paul Millsap. "We made a lot of mental mistakes. It's on
us."
The Jazz got nice contributions from two first-year bench players.
Small forward Elijah Millsap had a career-high 17 points and seven
rebounds, and rookie Rodney Hood, two games back from an extended
foot injury absence, scored 11 points.
NOTES: Lakers coach Byron Scott continues to fight the trend when it
comes to analytics. "I don't knock people who believe in it. That's
their prerogative," the 53-year-old former player told reporters
before Wednesday's game. "But I'm just more of an old-school type
guy." ... Scott was born in Ogden, Utah. ... The Jazz welcomed two
new players to their team this week after calling up G Bryce Cotton
and PF Jack Cooley from the NBA Development League for 10-day
contracts. Cooley was with Utah in training camp but was cut before
the regular season began. ... The Jazz assigned G Ian Clark to Idaho
of the D-League. ... Jazz PF Trevor Booker and Lakers F/C Jordan
Hill are cousins. Both were born in Newberry, S.C.
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