Jazz beat Sixers with Boozer power
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by CRS-ONE
Last night I got to watch the Jazz beat the Sixers, 106-95. Operation: Payback accomplished.
This avenges their March 23 loss to the Sixers at the Wachovia Center. My friend and I defied logic and drove into Philadelphia in the middle of a blizzard which made the usual 75-90 minute drive into Philadelphia a little over three hours. It was surreal seeing everyone heading toward New Jersey on the Walt Whitman Bridge and no one going into the city. That game ended with the Jazz choking and everyone in attendance getting free tickets to another game for braving the storm. That’s enough nostalgia for now.
Attendance for last night’s game was 11,006, but I really doubt there were that many people in the arena. The parking lot was pretty scarce. The one thing I was surprised about was to see a fair number of Jazz fans in the building. There were a bunch of Carlos Boozer jerseys in the arena.
One of the Boozer fans happened to be sitting behind us. It’s always good finding Jazz fans. This dude went to the same high school that Boozer went to back in Juneau, Alaska.
The biggest thing of note tonight was how sloppy both teams were. It looked like everyone was auditioning for the Washington Generals. You get bonus points if you get the reference. The Jazz were turning over the ball after getting defensive rebounds, people were throwing no-look behind the back passes into the crowds. Maybe someone rubbed a cheese steak over the ball to make it extra slipper. Who knows.
Boozer lead the Jazz with 26 points and 7 rebounds on the night. He got into foul troule early in the game wich gave the Sixers the lead in the second. He came back strong in the second half. One of his biggest criticisms since joining the Jazz has been about his toughness and durability. This game he showed how tough he was, playing with a sore ankle, having it retaped during halftime and coming back strong to finish up.
Deron Williams had another double-double, getting 15 points and assists. Andrei Kirilenko wasn’t having much of a notable game. He only scored six points on the night, but had stats in every category.
Mehmet Okur had a decent night, scoring 16 points. What was disheartening that he didn’t pull down a single rebound during the game. Nada. Zilch. That’s very depressing when you’re a 6’11” center who is coming off an All Star season. Memo didn’t get much tick tonight, playing only 26 minutes due to back spasms.
Like I suggested in my preview, the Jazz played their small lineup of Williams/Ronnie Brewer/Kirilenko/Boozer/Paul Millsap. The two second year players did fairly well; Brewer scored 19 points, 3 assists and 3 steals and Millsap had 10 points and 8 rebounds.
I’m really happy with how Brewer has progressed this season. He’s second in the league in steals (averaging 2.66 a game), scores at least 10 a game and does a decent job defending on the wing. He could be a candidate for most improve player of the year.
Millsap has picked up where he left off last season, as a reliable sixth man who can come off the bench, score and rebound. He could be a candidate for the sixth man trophy.
As for the Sixers, they were led by Andre Iguodala who had 20 points, 6 rebounds and 4 dimes. If you are going to going to blame someone on the Sixers for the loss, point a finger at Kyle Korver. He’s coming off an injury and had 4 points and 5 fouls in 22 minuts. He’s usually a sniper from the three point line but was 1-6 for the night. Center Samuel Dalembert gets an honorable mention to, as he sat most of the game with foul trouble. That left rookie Jason Smith to get abused in the paint by Carlos Boozer, but he did get to score 7 points for the night.
The Sixers do get bonus points for having a game introduction video that features hometown heroes the Roots. I can honestly say that this is my favorite one they’ve used EVER.
The Jazz have been playing an awkward 2-3 zone on defense lately. It’s getting better and hopefully they can improve their defense over the course of the season. Boozer looks like he’s trying hard this season to shake his reputation as a mediocre defender.
One more thing…the vendor at the Wachovia that runs the cheese steak counter switched and is much better. Pick one up if your there to see the Sixers, Flyers or Celine Dion.
The Jazz have the night off and face the Lakers at home on Friday night.
