Hayward, Jazz hold off Lakers
LOS ANGELES -- Gordon Hayward scored 23 points, and the Utah Jazz held off the Los Angeles Lakers for a 107-101 victory on Monday night at Staples Center.
The Jazz also got 16 points from Rodney Hood, 14 points and 17 rebounds from Rudy Gobert and 12 points from Boris Diaw. All five Utah starters scored in double figures.
Lou Williams had 38 points, seven assists and six rebounds for the Lakers (10-13), who lost their third in a row. Williams just missed posting back-to-back 40-point games. He had 40 against the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday.
Jordan Clarkson contributed 17 points and Julius Randle collected 11 points and 11 rebounds for Los Angeles.
The Lakers closed within three points on two occasions down the stretch, but each time the Jazz answered. Williams' floater cut the deficit to 100-97, but Hood made a 3-pointer to put the Jazz up by six with 3:01 remaining. Hood followed with a turnaround jumper in the lane for an eight-point edge 45 seconds later.
A 14-0 burst to open the third gave the Jazz a 71-53 advantage after a dunk by Gobert with 7:40 left into the quarter. Hayward scored 14 points in the third on 5 of 7 shooting, including a pair of 3-pointers, as the Jazz outscored the Lakers 32-21. Gobert had nine points in the period.
The Jazz grabbed a 57-53 at the half. Utah connected on 52.4 percent of their shots from the floor to 46.8 percent for Los Angeles. The Jazz made 42.1 percent (8 of 19) from 3-point range compared to 37.5 percent (3 of 8) for the Lakers.
For the game, Utah hit 47.5 percent of its shots to 44.8 percent for Los Angeles. The Jazz made 13 of 32 (40.6) of their 3-pointers to 5 of 14 (35.7) for the Lakers.
Jazz point guard George Hill missed his third consecutive game with a sprained left big toe. Utah also was without coach Quin Snyder, who missed the contest with an unknown illness. Assistant coach Igor Kokoskov replaced Snyder.
The injury bug bit the Lakers again. Backup forward-center Tarik Black suffered a sprained right ankle in the third quarter and did not return. Black finished with seven points and five rebounds in 11 minutes.
NOTES: Lakers G Lou Williams entered the game with a streak of 30 games with at least one made free throw. It was the longest active streak for a reserve player. Williams also was the team's leading scorer, averaging 17.5 points per game entering the contest. ... Lakers PG D'Angelo Russell (sore right knee) will be re-evaluated Tuesday. Russell has missed nine games. ... Jazz F Derrick Favors (left knee bone contusion) sat out his 10th consecutive contest. There is no timetable for his return. ... Los Angeles was 23-9 all-time against Utah at Staples Center. ... The two clubs meet again Dec. 27 at Staples. ... The Jazz host the Phoenix Suns on Tuesday. The Lakers visit the Houston Rockets on Wednesday.