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Jazz survives Rockets' rush for 3-1 lead

Williams scores 8 of his 17 points in fourth quarter to beat feisty Houston

Steve C. Wilson / AP
Houston Rockets forward Shane Battier and Utah Jazz forward Andrei Kirilenko, top, grapple for the ball during the first quarter Saturday.
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updated 1:40 a.m. ET April 27, 2008

SALT LAKE CITY - Mehmet Okur can expect to get something nice from teammate Deron Williams.

Okur bailed out Williams when he missed two free throws with 7.3 seconds left, then Okur made two from the line to seal an 86-82 win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday that put the Jazz up 3-1 in the best-of-7 series.

“Memo saved my butt. I ought to give him something. I ought to buy him a car or something,” Williams said.

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Okur had 18 rebounds, Carlos Boozer added 14 and the Jazz made up for some dismal outside shooting by controlling the lane.

“I tried to get myself going, stay active and mix my game up a little bit,” Okur said. “The ball didn’t fall for us, especially from the 3-point line tonight, but we were able to get the rebounds and get to the free throw line.”

Williams scored eight of his 17 points in the fourth quarter, starting an 8-0 run after Houston had trimmed a 16-point lead to just one with 10:39 left.

In the final minute, the Rockets did it again, with Shane Battier and Rafer Alston hitting back-to-back 3-pointers to cut an eight point lead to two.

Houston got another break when Williams, one of Utah’s better free throw shooters, missed both attempts, but Okur was there when the ball bounced off the rim and pulled down the biggest board of the night. Okur drew a foul, then sealed it with two from the line with 5.5 seconds to go.

The Jazz didn’t make a 3-pointer — going 0-for-14 from beyond the arc. But they did play better inside than Game 3, which the Rockets dominated inside while cutting the series lead to 2-1, and can wrap up the series with a win Tuesday in Houston.

“We matched them on the inside play. That mattered a great deal more than what happened on the 3-point line,” Utah coach Jerry Sloan said.

Tracy McGrady, who is 0-6 in playoff series, scored 23 points to lead the Rockets. McGrady was taunted with the chant “Over-Rated!” when he went to the foul line late in the game. He scored just four points in another quiet final quarter.

Through four games, he has scored a total of 12 points in the final quarter — and seven of those came in a 94-92 win in Game 3 that revived the Rockets’ hopes of going back to Houston with a possible 2-2 tie. Instead, it’s a 3-1 deficit against a Utah team which won the first two games at the Toyota Center.

“It was more physical in this game. They were bodying me up and that’s their game plan. I was still pushing through it, getting my shot,” McGrady said. “We put ourselves in a great position in the fourth quarter.”

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