Detroit Pistons vs Utah Jazz
When: 10:30 PM  ET, Friday, January 13, 2017
Where: Vivint Smart Home Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ESPN, FSN Detroit, ROOT (Utah)
PREDICTION: Jazz 94, Pistons 87

SALT LAKE CITY — Now armed with a fully healthy roster, the Utah Jazz are quickly showing they can be a dangerous opponent for even the most elite NBA teams.

The Jazz shared that message loud and clear while taking down the defending NBA champions on Tuesday night. Cleveland offered token resistance over the final three quarters in a 100-92 loss to Utah.

The next club to challenge the Jazz will be the Detroit Pistons, who visit Utah on Friday night.

The Cavaliers scored a season-low 12 points in the second quarter Tuesday, and after LeBron James sparked a brief rally to open the third quarter, faded away behind a 16-0 Jazz run.

Six different players scored in double figures for Utah (24-16) — including all five starters. Gordon Hayward led the way with one of his best performances of the season. Hayward finished with 28 points on 10-of-12 shooting and made several baskets that keyed the decisive third-quarter run.

“When he is playing like that, he is a real leader, and that’s what we need,” Utah center Rudy Gobert said.

Hayward and Gobert both continue to make strong cases for All-Star consideration. Hayward is averaging a career-best 22.2 points per game this season on 45.9 percent shooting. Gobert is just as imposing on the defensive end. He has accumulated 10-plus rebounds in 25 straight games and has notched 27 double-doubles this season. Gobert is also averaging career highs in points (12.3 per game), rebounds (12.3) and blocks (2.5).

For his part, Hayward is playing it cool about potentially getting an All-Star nod in February. Continued success, he says, will settle the question sooner or later.

“I feel like we got to move up a little higher in the standings,” Hayward said. “I’m worrying about wins more than anything. That stuff usually comes when your team is winning.”

Detroit now draws the task of figuring out new ways to deal with Hayward, Gobert and the rest of the Jazz. The Pistons (18-23) have struggled to slow opponents since enduring a five-game losing skid in mid-December. In a 3-3 start to January, they are allowing 114 points per game, having held just one opponent under 100.

Golden State became the latest team to torch Detroit. The Pistons allowed the Warriors to shoot 51.7 percent (15 of 29) from 3-point range in Golden State’s 127-107 win Thursday at Oakland, Calif. Five different Warriors hit a 3-pointer during a decisive 33-12 third-quarter run, led by Klay Thompson and Andre Iguodala with a pair each.

“We made too many defensive game plan mistakes where we weren’t doing what we were supposed to be doing,” Pistons coach Stan Van Gundy said. “We didn’t get back in transition, we didn’t get matched up, and we turned the ball over. When you don’t do those three things against a team like that, you have no chance.”

Detroit sustained a blow when shooting guard Kentavious Caldwell-Pope was knocked out of Thursday’s game with a shoulder injury. Caldwell-Pope ran into a pick early in the first quarter and ran off the floor clutching his left shoulder. X-rays were negative, but he did not return.

Caldwell-Pope could be questionable for the Friday game, but Detroit is expected to welcome back forward Reggie Bullock. He was away from the team Thursday for personal reasons.

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Utah Jazz vs. Minnesota Timberwolves
When: 8:00 PM ET, Saturday, January 7, 2017
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota

TV: 8 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), FSN North (Minnesota)
PREDICTION: Jazz 109, Timberwolves 107

Oddsmakers currently have the Jazz listed as 4-point favorites versus the Timberwolves, while the game’s total is sitting at 195.

It would seem as if a 41-point night from guard Andrew Wiggins would translate to a win for the Minnesota Timberwolves. On Friday night against Washington, though, that wasn’t the case.

Wiggins posted his second 40-point game of the season by scoring 41 against the Wizards. But as Minnesota squandered a lead after three quarters, Wiggins’ big night became irrelevant.

“We’re finding different ways to (lose),” Minnesota coach Tom Thibodeau told the Timberwolves Radio Network after Friday’s loss. “It’s disappointing.”

The loss in Washington, D.C., came two days after the Timberwolves suffered one of their biggest gut punches of the season.

Minnesota managed to fall behind the Philadelphia 76ers by 26 points before clawing its way back. A 3-pointer by Ricky Rubio in the final seconds seemed to guarantee overtime, but Philadelphia scored with under a second remaining to deal the Timberwolves yet another disappointing finish.

Minnesota (11-25) will now try to bounce back from its unsuccessful road trip by welcoming the Utah Jazz (22-15) on Saturday for a game at Target Center. It’s the second time the teams have met, with Utah winning the previous matchup 112-103 at Target Center.

Utah, which allows the fewest points per game in the NBA (95.3), is on a small losing streak of its own. The Jazz have dropped their last two games — both on the road — to the Boston Celtics and Toronto Raptors.

In Thursday’s loss, Utah’s typically stingy defense allowed Kyle Lowry to score 33 points en route to the Raptors’ 101-93 win in Toronto. DeMar DeRozan added 23 for the Raptors.

“We weren’t physical enough and it hurt us,” Utah coach Quin Snyder told the Salt Lake Tribune after the game. “We just got beat.”

Though Utah lost on Thursday, the Jazz did see the return of point guard Dante Exum, who missed the previous two weeks with tendinitis. Exum did not play in Utah’s first game against Minnesota but now gives the Jazz a bit of backcourt depth now that he’s healthy again.

“It’s just a sharp pain whenever I run or jump,” Exum told the Salt Lake Tribune. “So it was definitely limiting me playing to my full potential. That’s why I had to make the decision.”

Minnesota’s bench remains a question mark for Saturday. Guard Shabazz Muhammad missed Friday’s game because of illness, and his status for Saturday is uncertain.

Though Utah isn’t a high-scoring team — the Jazz average 99.0 points per game, third fewest in the Western Conference — Minnesota’s defense has struggled as of late. Such was the case Friday for the Timberwolves, who surrendered 112 points to the Wizards.

Thibodeau knows his team will have to be much better defensively in the second game of a back-to-back.

“The discipline, the intensity, the finishing of the defense, there’s a lot of closeouts where we were two steps in and then we don’t challenge the shot correctly,” Thibodeau told the Timberwolves Radio Network. “If you let a guy shoot, he’s going to get rhythm.”

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Golden State Warriors vs. Utah Jazz
When: 9:00 PM ET, Thursday, December 8, 2016
Where: Vivint Smart Home Arena, Salt Lake City, Utah

TV: 9 p.m. ET, CSN Bay Area (Golden State), ROOT (Utah)
PREDICTION: Jazz 113, Warriors 111

Oddsmakers currently have the Warriors listed as 7½-point favorites versus the Jazz, while the game’s total is sitting at 213.

SALT LAKE CITY — Slowing down Golden State’s offense is a bit like trying to move a mountain with bare hands. The Warriors are scorching one defense after another with their ability to relentlessly score from anywhere on the floor.

Golden State (19-3) is averaging 130.5 points per game in the month of December. The Warriors have won their last two games by an average of 27.3 points, with the latest result being a 115-98 victory over the Los Angeles Clippers on Wednesday night.

Their big three of Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant and Klay Thompson have been virtually unstoppable over the past four contests. Thompson is averaging 31.3 points on 48.9 percent shooting. Curry is scoring 22.8 points per game on 47.6 percent shooting and dishing out 6.0 assists. Durant is chipping in 23.8 points on 47.0 percent shooting and collecting 8.3 rebounds.

This sort of offensive efficiency is no fluke. Golden State leads the NBA in field-goal percentage (.502) and is the only team in the league shooting above 50 percent. The Warriors are also league leaders in assists (32.0) and scoring (120.0).

It’s reached a point where Golden State almost demands perfection and a 115-point outing against the Clippers is a bit of a disappointment.

“Honestly, I don’t think we played well offensively tonight,” Draymond Green said after Thursday’s game. “We missed a lot of shots that we normally make. The flow wasn’t really there. But the most important thing is we defended and didn’t turn the ball over. And when you don’t turn the ball over and you defend, you give yourself a chance to win every game.”

Dealing with such a potent offense will be challenging even for one the NBA’s best defensive teams. The Utah Jazz are allowing just 95.5 points per game this season and have given up only 93.0 points per contest in 11 home contests.

Containing Golden State at that level will be nearly impossible for Utah, which has just 11 available players for Thursday. George Hill (sprained toe), Rodney Hood (hamstring strain), Derrick Favors (knee contusion) and Alec Burks (ankle rehabilitation) will not play against the Warriors.

Gordon Hayward is also banged up after injuring the same finger he fractured during the preseason in Tuesday’s 112-105 win over Phoenix. Hayward left during the third quarter to get the finger examined and returned for the fourth quarter. His finger was bruised and swollen after the game but, fortunately for Utah, not broken.

“It was stinging, so I wanted to make sure everything was fine before I came back,” Hayward said. “Sometimes, you just have to let pain dissipate a little bit. We put some spray on it and re-wrapped it. It’s not broken. We X-rayed it and it’s fine.”

A troubling trend has emerged for the Jazz over their last three games. In each game, Utah has surrendered a double-digit lead during the fourth quarter and held on in the final minutes for a victory.

Fourth-quarter sluggishness was really pronounced against the Suns. The Jazz scored just nine points over the first 10 minutes of the quarter and relaxed on defense, allowing Phoenix to rally from a 19-point deficit and tie the game at 103-103 with 3:07 remaining.

“I don’t think we’re playing our best defense at all,” Utah coach Quin Snyder said. “The ball has gotten in the paint too much. We’ve been playing teams that are just driving the ball. In some respects, when Rudy is protecting the rim, that’s good. But if you look at the lineups we’ve had, we haven’t had a lot of quickness on the floor. Guys got to be more disciplined.”

Golden State has dominated the series with Utah in recent seasons. The Warriors have won five straight and 11 of the last 12 against the Jazz. Utah’s lone win in that stretch was a 110-100 home victory on Jan. 30, 2015.

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Utah Jazz vs Los Angeles Lakers
When: 10:30 PM ET, Monday, December 5, 2016
Where: Staples Center, Los Angeles, California

TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), Spectrum SportsNet (Los Angeles)
PREDICTION: Jazz 105, Lakers 99

“We talked about this early in the season. We felt like he’d expanded his game,” Utah coach Quin Snyder told reporters of Hayward. “. … He’s able to score in multiple ways. When someone takes something away, he’s able to have another option. The biggest thing Gordon’s been doing is defending and, as a result, he’s getting some easy baskets.” The Jazz will be without point guard and second-leading scorer George Hill for the third straight game due to a toe injury, but the Lakers won’t feel sorry for them with plenty of injury concerns of their own. Second-leading scorer D’Angelo Russell (knee) and fourth-leading point producer Nick Young (calf) are expected to miss the game for Los Angeles. The Lakers have dropped three of four after Saturday’s 103-100 setback against Memphis.

ABOUT THE JAZZ (12-9): In addition to Hill, forward Derrick Favors (knee) and guard Alec Burks (ankle) are out but Utah was happy to have third-leading scorer Rodney Hood back in the lineup for Saturday’s win over Denver. Hood missed one game with a hamstring injury and did not shoot well in his return Saturday (4-for-14) while finishing with 15 points in 28 minutes. Hayward, who is averaging 22.8 points overall, told reporters, “we’ve been able to survive the storm and find ways to win games without some of our top guys. I’m proud of that.”

ABOUT THE LAKERS (10-12): Point guard Jose Calderon is expected to join Russell and Young on the sidelines after suffering a hamstring injury Saturday while forward Larry Nance Jr. (knee) is questionable. Los Angeles will need more from others to stay afloat and reserve guard Louis Williams recorded 40 points in Saturday’s loss to push his team-leading average to 17.5. Small forward Luol Deng has struggled much of the season, shooting just 34.3 percent from the field, but came through with a season-high 18 points against Memphis.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. The Jazz knocked off the Lakers 96-89 at home on Oct. 28 for their fifth win in the last six meetings.

2. Utah F Trey Lyles is stepping up with Favors out, averaging 13 points and shooting 55.3 percent from the field the last five games.

3. Williams has made at least one free throw in 30 straight games – the longest active streak for a reserve in the league.

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Utah At Golden State
When: 10:30 PM ET, Saturday, March 21, 2015
Where: Oracle Arena, Oakland, California
TV: 10:30 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), CSN Bay Area (Golden State)
PREDICTION: Warriors 101, Jazz 88
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Oddsmakers currently have the Warriors listed as 10-point favorites versus the Jazz, while the game’s total is sitting at 195.

The Warriors were a 112-96 winner in their most recent outing at home against the Pelicans. They covered the -13.5-point spread as favorites, while the total score (208) made winners of OVER bettors.

Golden State is riding an 11-game home winning streak and showed off its depth again Friday while winning easily despite being without Klay Thompson (ankle) and getting a 4-of-17 shooting effort from Stephen Curry. Harrison Barnes is picking up his level of play in two games without Thompson and totaled 47 points in those contests while going for 20 or more in back-to-back regular season games for the first time in his career. The Warriors might not need to rest any players on the back-to-back after holding everyone to 27 minutes or fewer Friday.

Team record: 55-13 SU,39-28-1 ATS
Current Streak: won 4 straight games.
Golden State is 9-1 SU in its last 10 games
The total has gone OVER in 5 of Golden State’s last 5 games
Golden State is 15-6-1 ATS in its last 22 games at home
Golden State is 5-0 SU in its last 5 games at home

The Jazz were a 80-73 winner in their most recent outing on the road against the Lakers. They covered the -4.5-point spread as favorites, while the total score (153) made winners of UNDER bettors.

Utah squandered its hopes for a postseason spot with a 17-33 record through Feb. 6 but never quit on the season and has since gone 14-4. “I think this run has been good for us,” Gobert told the Salt Lake Tribune. “It’s important for us to get respect in the league. It’s important that we get respect from everyone, and that’s a big thing that’s important to us.” The Jazz allowed only one opponent to reach 100 points in those 18 games and are coming off an 80-73 win at the Los Angeles Lakers on Thursday in which they blocked eight shots and recorded 11 steals.

Team record: 31-37 SU,38-29-1 ATS
Utah is 8-4 ATS in its last 12 games
Utah is 7-1 SU in its last 8 games
The total has gone UNDER in 11 of Utah’s last 12 games
Utah is 5-1 ATS in its last 6 games on the road

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When: 6:00 PM ET, Sunday, November 9, 2014
Where: The Palace of Auburn Hills, Auburn Hills, Michigan
TV: 6 p.m. ET, ROOT (Utah), FSN Detroit
PREDICTION: Pistons 97, Jazz 94
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Oddsmakers currently have the Pistons listed as 4½-point favorites versus the Jazz, while the game’s total is sitting at 195.

Detroit has done a good job of taking care of the ball, as its average of 12 turnovers is the fifth-fewest in the league, and it has six players averaging double-digit points and another on the cusp. Consistency has been the issue, not only with enigmatic forward Josh Smith (14.2 points, 7.8 rebounds), who is shooting 32.1 percent, but also with the perimeter players. The Pistons were a horrendous 14-of-64 from 3-point range while losing their first three games but have heated up from outside and gone 22-of-46 from behind the arc during their consecutive wins.

Last time out for Detroit, they were a 98-95 winner as they battled the Bucks at home. The Pistons failed to cover in the match as a -5-point favorite, while 193 combined points moved the game UNDER for totals bettors.

Team record: 2-3 SU,0-5 ATS
Detroit is 0-5 ATS in its last 5 games
Detroit is 2-7 SU in its last 9 games
The total has gone OVER in 10 of Detroit’s last 15 games
The total has gone UNDER in 4 of Detroit’s last 5 games

Utah has allowed 100 or more points in five of its six games and is allowing opponents to shoot 48.2 percent from the field, so it’s no coincidence its two wins have come in its two best defensive efforts. Offense has not been a problem, with Gordon Hayward (18 points, 6.3 rebounds, 5.3 assists) leading a group of six double-digit scorers. The Jazz need more consistency from power forward Derrick Favors, though, as he was limited to six points for the second time in three games against Dallas after scoring a career-high 32 on Nov. 1 against Phoenix and posted a double-double against the Cavaliers.

In their last action, Utah was a 105-82 loser at home against the Mavericks. They failed to cover the +2.5-point spread as underdogs, while the combined score (187) was profitable news for UNDER bettors.

Team record: 2-4 SU,3-3 ATS
Utah is 7-14-3 ATS in its last 24 games
Utah is 5-20 SU in its last 25 games
Utah is 1-9 SU in its last 10 games on the road
The total has gone OVER in 6 of Utah’s last 7 games on the road

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Al Jefferson had 22 points and eight rebounds to help Utah keep its playoff hopes alive with a 96-80 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, setting up one more must-win game in the season finale on Wednesday.

“It comes down to one game now,” Jefferson said. “It’s a big game. The only thing we can worry about is what we can control, going out there and trying to take care of the game, and trying to win, and just leave the rest up to the Lakers, I guess.”

Mo Williams had 15 points and seven assists for the Jazz, who needed a win to avoid being eliminated in the Western Conference playoff race.

To get into the playoffs, the Jazz need to win at Memphis on Wednesday and for the Los Angeles Lakers to lose at home against Houston that night. Utah owns the tiebreaker after beating the Lakers two out of three times this season.

“I guess I have to try and get in touch with Kevin McHale and tell him to handle it for me,” said Jefferson, who played for the Rockets’ coach when both were in Minnesota.

Derrick Williams had 18 points and six rebounds for the Timberwolves, who were missing center Nikola Pekovic because of a bruised left calf.

The Jazz entered the night clinging to the postseason picture, down 1½ games to the Lakers with two to play.

For a team that could have as many as nine expiring contracts this summer, the Jazz are desperately chasing one more playoff appearance. Jefferson, Paul Millsap, Mo Williams and Randy Foye all could be looking for new teams when the season ends, with a bevy of young players waiting to assume larger roles next year.

They’ve won nine of their last 11 games since a four-game losing streak in the middle of last month threatened to bury them.

“Talk about this group of guys, man, the character that they have, there was no quit in this group,” coach Tyrone Corbin said. “The guys just continued to work and put ourselves in a position to get back when we were struggling there.”

Utah didn’t play all that well early, but it was just good enough to stay on top of a Timberwolves team that is slogging to the finish of another long season. The Wolves shot just 33 percent in the first quarter, and without Pekovic patrolling the paint they didn’t grab an offensive rebound until late in the third quarter.

A 13-4 run by Minnesota cut Utah’s lead to three points late in the third quarter, but once again the Wolves had no answer for Jefferson. The former Wolf scored 40 against the Wolves in a 107-100 win on Friday night in Salt Lake City and continued to attack the team’s soft middle on Monday night. He scored six straight points after Minnesota’s run to give the Jazz some breathing room again, and they never looked back.

Foye scored 14 points for the Jazz.

“You want to finish up better than that,” coach Rick Adelman said of the home finale. “I know they had something to play for, but it was our last home game. I thought we should have had better effort, but we didn’t.”

The Timberwolves have one game left in what has been a miserable, injury-plagued season. They will enter this offseason as they have every one since 2004 — with a spot in the lottery coming in June and plenty of questions about the roster and who will be back to lead it. Owner Glen Taylor has been mum on president David Kahn’s future. Kahn has a team option on his contract for next season.

Coach Rick Adelman has two years left on his deal, but has considered stepping down to help his wife, Mary Kay, who is being treated for seizures. Her condition caused him to miss 11 games earlier this season. She is due to meet with doctors again shortly after the season ends and Adelman is hoping her condition will continue to stabilize. Before the game, Adelman said he was going forward with the idea that he would be back next season and hoped to have a definitive answer in the next couple of weeks.

“I think what happens with Mary Kay or any of that, that certainly would turn things in a different direction,” Adelman said. “Right now I don’t see that (happening), but I’m going to wait and see until we talk to the doctors and see what direction they’ve decided we need to go at this point. Then we’ll move from there.”

Game notes

Wolves PG Ricky Rubio had a quiet night with six points on 2-for-9 shooting and four assists. … The Wolves finish the season with a game at San Antonio on Wednesday. … It was just the 13th win on the road for the Jazz this season. They’ve won three straight away from home.

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Bryant scored a season-high 47 points and carried the Los Angeles Lakers closer to a playoff berth with a 113-106 victory over the short-handed but tenacious Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday night.

The Lakers moved a full game up on the Utah Jazz for the eighth and final playoff spot in the Western Conference.

“We’ve got no breathing room at all,” Bryant said. “I’m still on edge. We’ve got to win three more games and we’re in.”

Portland, missing the playoffs for the second straight season, has lost nine straight, the most since an 11-game skid in the 2005-06 season. Rookie Damian Lillard led the Blazers with a career-high 38 points.

Pau Gasol had 23 points, seven rebounds and nine assists, while Dwight Howard added 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers. Bryant was 18 of 18 from the free throw line and played the entire game, determined to pull out a win after trailing early.

“What he (Bryant) is doing is phenomenal. He’s determined to get us in the playoffs,” Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni said. “That’s what happens when you open your mouth and guarantee that we’ll get in the playoffs.”

Bryant vowed in late February that his team would make it to the postseason. The Lakers wrap up the regular season at home with games against playoff-bound Golden State, San Antonio and Houston.

Gasol knotted the game at 96 with a layup and a jumper with 7:09 left. After Lillard’s 15-footer, Gasol added another jumper to tie it again. His layup gave the Lakers a 102-100 edge before Bryant hit a pair of free throws and added a 23-foot jump shot with 4:09 left to make it 106-100.

Howard’s alley-oop dunk from Gasol with 53 seconds left made it 110-104 and all but sealed it.

For much of the game, it seemed like Bryant the veteran against Lillard the upstart rookie.

“He’s spectacular … really fantastic,” Bryant said of the Blazers’ five-time rookie of the month. “A lot of players get hot, but he’s got the moves, patience, intelligence, the balance on his jumpers. He’s the real deal.”

Lillard has grown up admiring Bryant.

“I got to guard him and he got to guard me,” Lillard said. “I enjoyed the challenge.”

The deck was stacked from the start against the Blazers, who started four rookies for the first time in the team’s history.

Portland was without starters Wesley Matthews (ankle), J.J. Hickson (back) and Nicolas Batum (right shoulder). As a result, two-time All-Star LaMarcus Aldridge was the only veteran starting with rookie forward Victor Claver, guards Lillard and Will Barton, and center Meyers Leonard.

Matthews injured his right ankle in Portland’s 96-91 loss to Dallas on Sunday, while Batum was missing his fourth straight game with a sore shoulder. Hickson says he’s been dealing with a painful lower back for the past several games.

But the rookies got off to an astonishingly fast start, going up 17-8 on Lillard’s fadeaway jumper. Lillard banked in a 3-pointer to extend the lead to 22-12 and the Blazers made eight of their first nine shots from the field.

He hit another 3 to make it 35-25 and the Blazers went on to lead 41-33 at the end of the first, their most points in the opening quarter this season.

The Lakers chipped away at the lead and Bryant’s long jumper on the baseline closed Los Angeles to 50-48.

The Blazers led 69-61 at the break, but the Lakers opened the second half with a 10-0 run capped by Howard’s hook shot to pull ahead 71-69, their first lead of the game. Howard’s layup extended the lead to 78-71.

The Blazers were hurt when Claver rolled his ankle late in the third quarter and retreated to the locker room, but they stayed on the Lakers’ heels, coming within 86-85 on Eric Maynor’s running jumper and pulling in front on Luke Babbitt’s 3 pointer.

Maynor’s fadeaway put Portland up 95-90.

“It was a very good effort by our team, but unfortunately we couldn’t pull it out,” Blazers coach Terry Stotts said. “A couple of plays down the stretch could have gone either way, a couple of shots could have gone either way. For the most part, I thought it was a well-played game against a team that’s pretty hungry to make the playoffs.”

Game notes

Combined with the Lakers’ 104-96 victory over New Orleans on Tuesday night, it was the first time this season the Lakers had won both games of a back-to-back. … Lillard was awarded the NBA’s Community Assist award for March because of his anti-bullying campaign. He is the fourth rookie to win the honor, and first since Atlanta’s Al Horford in 2008. More than 5,000 fans have signed a pledge to help end bullying as part of Lillard’s “Respect” program. … Lillard became second Portland rookie to go over 500 assists. Kelvin Ransey had 555 in the 1980-81 season. … The Blazers had won three straight and 12 of their last 14 against the Lakers at the Rose Garden.

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“You could see the look on everybody’s face change,” Jazz guard Randy Foye said. “Nobody said anything. It was just everybody had that look on their face, ‘You know what time it is. You know what we have to do.’ ”

While the Warriors had a chance to seal a playoff spot, Utah seized the opportunity for itself.

Mo Williams hit a huge 3-pointer in the final seconds to finish with 25 points, Al Jefferson added 19 points and 12 rebounds, and the Jazz regained the Western Conference’s final playoff position over the Lakers by holding off the Warriors 97-90 on Sunday night for a monumental road win.

“I can’t say enough about this group of guys,” Corbin said. “This was all about them and them wanting it, and the way they came out. Although we made some mistakes in the game, everybody laid everything they had in them out there on the floor.”

Williams’ 3-pointer with 13.4 seconds remaining put Utah ahead by six and spoiled Golden State’s shot to clinch a playoff berth in front of a 29th sellout crowd of 19,596. The Jazz moved a half-game ahead of the Lakers for the eighth seed. Utah also owns the tiebreaker after winning the season series 2-1 against the Lakers, who lost to the Clippers 109-95 earlier in the day.

“Four games left. We’ve got have them,” Jefferson said.

Stephen Curry scored 17 of his 22 points in the first half and Klay Thompson had 20 points for the Warriors, who were trying to clinch a postseason spot for the first time since 2007 and just the second in 19 years.

Now that celebration will have to wait.

David Lee, who has never been to the playoffs in his eight NBA seasons, added 21 points and 13 rebounds for Golden State, which was outplayed inside by Utah’s front line of Jefferson, Derrick Favors (12 points, 13 rebounds) and Paul Millsap (11 points, six rebounds) most of the way.

“We still control our own situation, which is good, but you don’t want to have this feeling again,” Curry said. “We’ve got to get it done and there’s no excuse for us not to.”

The Jazz looked every bit like a team playing with everything at stake, just as Corbin had hoped before the game. They outhustled and outmuscled Golden State for most of 48 minutes, holding off one final flurry for a critical win in front of the an Oracle Arena crowd eager to celebrate.

After the Warriors went down 11 points late in the fourth quarter, Thompson and Curry each hit a 3-pointer to cut Utah’s lead to 91-86 with 3:28 to play. Reserve Draymond Green followed by tipping in Lee’s miss to bring the Warriors within three.

Jefferson hit a jumper that silenced fans standing all over the arena, then Lee answered with a layup to bring the crowd back to full throat. Golden State forced another stop, but wasted the offensive opportunity.

Green had his layup blocked by Favors, who keyed Utah’s defense all game, but got the ball back and tossed it out to Jarrett Jack — who missed a contested 3-pointer with the shot clock winding down. The Jazz isolated Williams at the top of the arc against Green, and he drained the shot that sent Utah home with a monumental win.

“I don’t know what’s going on with them, to be honest,” Williams said of Golden State’s playoff-starved crowd. “We’ve got enough going on with us.”

The Warriors are just a game ahead of Houston — which owns the tiebreaker after winning the season series 3-1 — for the West’s sixth seed. Golden State still needs any combination of two wins or losses by the conference’s ninth team to seal a playoff berth.

“They played like a team that their playoff lives depended on this game,” Warriors coach Mark Jackson said. “We played, at times, like a team that had a cushion.”

Curry kept the Warriors close by scoring the first nine points during his team’s erratic start, which included four turnovers in the game’s first 4:12. He made his first three shots from the arc, the last giving Golden State a 38-29 lead midway through the second quarter.

The Jazz erased that deficit in fewer than four minutes behind a 17-4 run capped by Gordon Hayward’s 3-pointer. After going ahead by 10 points on consecutive deep 3s by Foye and Williams, Utah held on for a 56-48 halftime lead.

Golden State sliced Utah’s lead to a point in the third quarter before the Jazz took control again. Jefferson converted a layup over Jack to start a three-point play that highlighted a 10-1 spurt that put Utah up 75-65, a deficit the Warriors never could overcome.

“No way,” Favors said, “did I want to see them celebrate.”

Game notes

Utah won the season series 2-1. … Jazz reserve F Alec Burks sat out with a sprained right ankle, which occurred during Utah’s win over New Orleans on Friday night. He is day to day. … The Warriors signed G Scott Machado from Santa Cruz of the NBA Development League to a 10-day contract.

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Kobe meant no offense to Shaq, his longtime teammate and former rival. He’s just busy doing everything and playing nearly every minute to keep the Lakers in the playoff race.

Bryant had 23 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists in his 19th career triple-double, and the Lakers beat the Dallas Mavericks 101-81 on Tuesday night in a key game for two teams struggling to get into the Western Conference postseason picture.

With former coach Phil Jackson in attendance for O’Neal’s honors, Bryant put on a virtuoso performance while playing more than 47 minutes. Bryant has rested for just 79 seconds in the past two games, but he’s keeping the Lakers afloat during the latest round of injuries and setbacks in their roller-coaster season.

“I wish I could (have seen it), but this is a huge game for us,” Bryant said of the ceremony for O’Neal, his teammate on three championship teams. “I had to stay back here and get ready for the second half. We talked when I came in at halftime. We stopped and chopped it up for a couple of minutes.”

O’Neal liked what he saw from his courtside seat next to his mother. With the win, Los Angeles moved back into an eighth-place tie in the West with the Utah Jazz (39-36), who hold the tiebreaker edge on the Lakers.

Dwight Howard had 24 points and 12 rebounds while hitting seven fourth-quarter free throws for the Lakers (39-36), who had lost four of six before jumping to a big early lead on Dallas and hanging on to it throughout the second half.

“I’m just happy we played the right way tonight, especially on the defensive end,” Howard said.

Bryant did much of the heavy lifting, but the rest of the Lakers also played well without injured starters Steve Nash and Metta World Peace. Pau Gasol had 14 points and 10 rebounds while guarding Dirk Nowitzki, and Earl Clark contributed 17 points and 12 rebounds while blocking a career-high five shots in a stellar defensive game off the bench.

“We’re desperate, and the players know it,” Lakers coach Mike D’Antoni said. “I didn’t think we had a great game offensively. We missed a lot of easy shots, didn’t get hot, but we were playing so well defensively that we won it that way.”

Dallas (36-38) still has a game in hand on the Lakers and Jazz, but the Mavs’ task just got tougher. Chris Kaman scored 14 points and Nowitzki had just 11 points on 4-of-13 shooting for the Mavericks, who had won four of five.

“I thought overall we didn’t play well enough,” Nowitzki said. “They used their length on our scorers. Coming into this building, I think the only way we beat them is if we shoot well from the floor. I didn’t think we were shooting the ball well enough to steal one here.”

After trailing for most of the night, Dallas was down by just seven points when the Mavs began intentionally fouling Howard. Hack-a-Dwight backfired miserably, with Howard going a respectable 7-for-12 while the Lakers made a decisive 16-1 run, holding the Mavericks to just one field goal in the final 4 1/2 minutes.

“It is a hit. It is a game we needed,” Dallas coach Rick Carlisle said. “I think everyone is frustrated. I mean, Dirk understands what this stage is about. We have some inexperienced guys that haven’t been here, so this is a valuable learning experience for them, but it has a price.”

Although the Lakers aren’t at full strength, at least they can get some rest at home. After a road-heavy March schedule, the Lakers must leave Los Angeles just once more in the regular season while playing six of their last eight on their home court.

The Lakers retired O’Neal’s No. 34 jersey at halftime, with Lakers luminaries including Jerry West, Elgin Baylor and Jamaal Wilkes assembling for the ceremony. The Staples Center crowd loved Shaq, but the fans adored former Jackson, who attended what was likely his first game since walking away from the team in 2011.

Jackson was serenaded with multiple chants of “We want Phil!” during his brief remarks to the crowd, echoing the same chants that filled Staples Center late last year when the Lakers flirted with bringing back the 11-time NBA champion coach before unexpectedly hiring D’Antoni to replace Mike Brown.

The Lakers made an 18-6 run for a 16-point lead late in the first half led by Bryant, who put on a show. After banking in a tremendously difficult 16-footer while getting fouled, he spun and appeared to look directly at Jackson, whose smile didn’t change.

Los Angeles’ 15-point halftime lead dwindled to five before Clark led another rally, and Bryant kept the Lakers ahead in the fourth quarter before Dallas resorted to purposely fouling Howard.

Game notes

Nash is hopeful he’ll return Friday after a bit more rest for his injured hip, while World Peace won’t be back any time soon from surgery on a torn meniscus in his left knee. … Nowitzki got a technical foul for arguing with 4:04 to play while Dallas trailed by seven points.

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