NBA – Jazz take Booze cruise in win over the Lakers (+ video)

SALT LAKE CITY (NBA) - Carlos Boozer scored 27 points and tied a career play-off high with 20 rebounds to lead the Utah Jazz to a 104-99 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Friday.

The triumph has cut the Lakers’ advantage in the Western Conference semi-final showdown to 2-1 with Game Four also to be played in Salt Lake City on Sunday.

Team USA’s Kobe Bryant led the Lakers with 34 points but the supporting cast wasn’t nearly as good as in previous contests, with Spain superstar Pau Gasol scoring just 12 points and corralling six rebounds.

“We expected them to be more comfortable and to play with more confidence,” Gasol said. “They really set the tone early, and we didn’t do a good job of taking care of the ball.”

The game was knotted at 23-23 after the first quarter but Utah pulled clear in the second frame and led 52-43 at half-time.

Utah’s defense created havoc, leading to a lot of easy baskets in transition.

Gasol, who had five of the Lakers’ 18 turnovers, said: “Personally, I can do much better in Game Four on that aspect.

“We’ve got to take care of the ball, keep sharing the ball as we have in the whole stretch that we played well. There is still a lot of room for improvement.

“We didn’t play well, but we still had a chance to make it really close and even tie the game. We’re going to work on some things tomorrow and hopefully in Game Four we’ll do a better job and have a chance to win the game.”

Gasol also said LA must do a better job against Boozer.

“He definitely stepped up,” Gasol said.

“He got going in the second quarter, the second half. We didn’t do a good job of attacking him on both ends of the floor and making him work.” 


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