Jazz at Nuggets
The Utah Jazz wasted a golden opportunity at home to strengthen their hold on the final playoff spot in the Western Conference. They will now try to inch closer to a postseason berth on the road when they visit the Denver Nuggets on Sunday.
The Los Angeles Clippers rested their starters and gave the second unit a run at Utah on Friday, but the Jazz could not take advantage and lost in overtime 102-99. The setback leaves Utah a game up on Houston - which also lost at home Thursday - in the race for the last playoff berth and two games behind seventh-place Dallas with three to play. "We've got to move on from this one," forward Gordon Hayward told reporters after finishing with 24 points and 13 rebounds. "We have a three-game season coming up. I think that's the way we have to look at this one. We have to win each one of these next three games if we want to get in." Denver did what Utah could not by outlasting a host of San Antonio reserves in a 102-98 victory on Friday.
TV: 5 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), Altitude (Denver)
ABOUT THE JAZZ (39-40): The only positive in Friday's loss was the successful return of Alec Burks, who had missed 50 games with a broken leg. The fifth-year pro hit all three of his 3-point tries, was 4-of-5 from the field overall and finished with 11 points in only 13 minutes, offering a glimpse of what he could provide off the bench if the squad reaches the postseason. "He did a lot more than I expected him to do in his first game back. I thought he looked comfortable," coach Quin Snyder told the media. "I was pleased with what he did."
ABOUT THE NUGGETS (33-47): Denver's win over the depleted Spurs gave them one special distinction, as they are the only team in the NBA to defeat both Golden State and San Antonio. "That's a pretty cool accomplishment," guard Gary Harris told reporters. "But we still have a lot of ways to improve. I'm happy with the way everyone is progressing." Jusuf Nurkic scored a career-high 21 points and Nikola Jokic hauled in a career-high 15 rebounds in the triumph as the Nuggets broke a three-game slide.
BUZZER BEATERS
1. Denver has scored an averaged of 84.3 points in dropping each of the first three meetings.
2. Hayward has scored at least 21 points in four of his last five games.
3. Nuggets rookie PG Emmanuel Mudiay is a combined 5-of-18 from the floor in two games against the Jazz.