Hornets at Jazz
The Utah Jazz are making things very difficult for teams trying to secure their playoff positions. The red-hot Jazz will try to push their winning streak to six and throw a wrench into another team’s postseason plans when they host the Charlotte Hornets on Monday. Utah has little chance of jumping up into the No. 8 spot in the Western Conference but has been one of the best teams in the league over the last month-plus with 12 wins in the last 15 games.
The Hornets are clinging to a half-game lead over Miami for the No. 8 spot in the East and are opening up a five-game road trip against the Jazz after knocking off Chicago 101-91 on Friday. Charlotte was on the verge of a three-game losing streak before rallying from a 19-point deficit to knock off the Bulls despite being without Al Jefferson (knee) and Cody Zeller (shoulder) along the front line. Those two are both questionable to return on Monday, possibly leaving the Hornets thin up front against Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert of the Jazz.
TV: 9 p.m. ET, SportSouth (Charlotte), ROOT (Utah)
ABOUT THE HORNETS (29-35): Charlotte went on a nice run with Mo Williams running the offense while Kemba Walker was out of the lineup and is now trying to find a way to fit both into the scheme. Walker has come off the bench in each of his first two games back from a knee injury and is 6-of-23 from the field but stepped up his all-around game with eight rebounds and seven assists against the Bulls. Williams, who was named the Eastern Conference Player of the Week last week, is averaging 19 points in the two games with Walker back while shooting 40 percent from the field.
ABOUT THE JAZZ (29-36): Utah has several exciting young players and is beginning to put all the talent together, especially on the defensive end. The Jazz are allowing an average of 85.5 points over the last 15 games and have outrebounded their opponent in each of those 15 contests. Gobert’s role was bumped up when Enes Kanter was traded to the Oklahoma City Thunder at the trading deadline and the 7-1 Frenchman has responded by pulling down 17.3 rebounds while blocking 2.3 shots and adding 11 points in seven games this month.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Jazz G Rodney Hood has scored in double figures in a season-high three straight games.
2. Williams averaged 14.5 points in two games against Utah when he was with Minnesota earlier this season.
3. Charlotte snapped a 10-game losing streak in the series with a 104-86 home win on Dec. 20.