The Jazz got outscored 30-21 in the fourth quarter and they didn’t play much D as the Nuggets shot 50.7% from the floor and those were the two biggest reasons for the loss in Denver last night. Deron Williams led the way for the Jazz with another outstanding game last night with 34 points, 4 rebounds and 10 assists. Carlos Boozer was also outstanding for the Jazz last night with 25 points, 16 rebounds and 1 assist. Paul Millsap stuffed the stat sheet again with 16 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals and 3 blocked shots off the bench. Wesley Matthews pitched in with 15 points in 39 minutes. The Jazz are still up 3-2 in this series and they will look to close out the Nuggets in Game #6 in Salt Lake City.

The Jazz shot 53.2% from the floor last night and it helped them to another solid win over the Nuggets. Carlos Boozer led the way for the Jazz in this game with 31 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 2 blocked shots. Deron Williams also had a solid game with 24 points, 4 rebounds and 13 assists in this game. C.J. Miles pitched in with 21 points, 3 rebounds and 1 assist in this game. Wesley Matthews (18 points) and Paul Millsap (12 points) also helped out offensively for the Jazz in this game. The Jazz are now up 3-1 in this series.

The Jazz rushed out to a 84-68 after three quarters and they made it stand up. Deron Williams led the way for the Jazz with 24 points, 2 rebounds, 10 assists and 3 steals in this game. Paul Millsap was a absolute beast in this game with 22 points, 19 rebounds, 3 assists and 2 steals. Carlos Boozer pitched in with 18 points and 8 rebounds while Wesley Matthews helped out with 14 points, 5 rebounds and 3 steals. The Jazz are now up 2-1 in this series.

Deron Williams has been abusing Chauncey Billups and the Denver Nuggets in this series. In his two games so far, Williams is averaging 42.5 minutes, 29.5 points, 2.0 rebounds, 12.5 assists and 1.0 steal per game. He is shooting 51.7% from the floor and 50% from behind the three point line so far! Williams just seems to big for Billups to handle and the Jazz will be sure to keep exploiting that in this series.

The Jazz dug down deep within themselves and earned a gigantic victory last night in Denver. The Jazz shot 52.9% from the floor as a team and it was too much for the Nuggets to overcome. Deron Williams flat out abused Chauncey Billups most of the night as he finished up with 33 points, 2 rebounds, 14 assists, 1 steal and 1 blocked shot. Carlos Boozer was a flat out beast last night with 20 points, 15 rebounds and 2 assists. Paul Millsap stepped up off the bench with 18 points, 5 rebounds, 2 steals and 2 blocked shots last night. C.J. Miles played well on D against Carmelo Anthony last night and he finished up with 17 points, 3 rebounds and 6 assists himself. Kyle Korver provided instant offense off the bench for the Jazz last night with 13 points in only 24 minutes. The Jazz are now 1-1 in this series as it shifts to Salt Lake City later this week.

With Mehmet Okur out for the season the Jazz will need either Kyrylo Fesenko or Kosta Koufos to step up and give them some quality minutes. Fesenko is the more likely of the two to get the starting job. He played in 49 games (5 starts) for the Jazz during the regular season in which he averaged 8.3 minutes, 2.6 points, 1.8 rebounds and 0.3 assists per game. He played in 5 minutes in game #1 against the Nuggets with 1 point and 1 assist. Kosta Koufos is a former first round pick of the Jazz so he might have a bigger upside. He played in 36 games (0 starts) for the Jazz during the regular season and he averaged 4.8 minutes, 1.5 points, 1.3 rebounds and 0.2 assists per game. Koufos played in 3 minutes in the opening game of this season and he got a rebound but didn’t score. I have a feeling that the Jazz will need 15 good minutes for them while Paul Millsap and Carlos Boozer handle most of the heavy lifting along the front line.

Starting center Mehmet Okur will miss the rest of the season due to a ruptured Achilles tendon. He will miss the next 6-9 months after he decides to have surgery which could put him out o action until next Christmas. Okur played in 11 minutes in the first game of the playoff series against the Nuggets and he finished up with 7 points and 2 rebounds. Losing Okur is a big blow to the Jazz as either Kyrylo Fesenko or Kosta Koufos will start at center for the rest of the year. More than likely though the Jazz will go with a small lineup most of the time with Paul Millsap and Carlos Boozer on the court at the same time.

The Jazz hung in there until the 4th quarter when the Nuggets outscored them 38-27. The Jazz didn’t play and D tonight as the Nuggets shot 57.1% from the floor and they outrebounded them 42-31. Deron Williams led the way for the Jazz in this game with 26 points, 2 rebounds and 11 assists. Carlos Boozer not only started in this game but he was outstanding with 19 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 1 steal and 3 blocked shots. C.J. Miles had huge issues trying to stop Carmelo Anthony who dropped 42 points on them tonight. Miles finished up with 17 points and 2 assists in 24 minutes on the court. Paul Millsap was very good off the bench for the Jazz in this game with 15 points, 10 rebounds, 2 assists and 3 blocked shots. Kyle Korver pitched in with 13 points and 4 rebounds off the bench tonight. Mehmet Okur re-injured his Achilles after playing 11 minutes in this game. The Jazz better hope his injury isn’t serious as they are playing short anyway. The Nuggets now lead this series 1-0.

This is going to be a great series, probably the best first round matchup of the playoffs. The Jazz are a little banged up and that could come into play as the Nuggets seem to have everyone ready to go. Here is a closer look at the matchups in this series:

Point Guard: Deron Williams is one of the very best point guards in all of basketball. He played in 76 games (all starts) for the Jazz this year and he averaged 36.9 minutes, 18.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, 10.5 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Williams is a master at getting his teammates easy shots on the pick and roll.

Chauncey Billups is a battle tested big game player. He played in 73 games (all starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 34.1 minutes, 19.5 points, 3.1 rebounds, 5.6 assists and 1.1 steals per game. Billups is an outstanding shooter who doesn’t shy away from taking the big shot at the end of games.

EDGE: SLIGHT FOR JAZZ

Shooting Guard: This is the position where the kids play for both teams. Wesley Matthews was a undrafted free agent last summer and he turned into the starting shooting guard in no time. Matthews played in 82 games (48 starts) in which he averaged 24.7 minutes, 9.4 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game. He can pile in the points when needed.

Arron Afflalo really stepped up when given the chance for the Nuggets after spending a lot of time on the bench in Detroit in his first couple of years. He played in 82 games (75 starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 27.2 minutes, 8.8 points, 3.1 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.

EDGE: EVEN

Small Forward: With Andrei Kirilenko out for this series it will be up to C.J. Miles to step up. Miles played in 63 games (28 starts) for the Jazz this year and he averaged 23.8 minutes, 9.9 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. The most important thing the Jazz want Miles to do is play tough on D against Carmelo Anthony.

Carmelo Anthony is one of the best offensive players on the planet. He played in 69 games (all starts) for the Nuggets this year and he averaged 38.2 minutes, 28.2 points, 6.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.3 steals per game. He should be able to score a lot of points in this series especially if Miles doesn’t get help on D.

EDGE: HUGE FOR NUGGETS

Power Forward: Carlos Boozer is a game time decision but I think he will give it a go for game #1. If he can’t go Paul Millsap will start at PF. Boozer played in 78 games (all starts) for the Jazz this season and he averaged 34.3 minutes, 19.5 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He is a elite player when healthy.

Kenyon Martin has had a lot of success against the Jazz this season and he will see if it carries into the playoffs or not. Martin played in 58 games (all starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 34.2 minutes, 11.5 points, 9.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists, 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocked shots per game. He brings a nasty attitude to the Nuggets and he plays all out, all of the time.

EDGE: SLIGHT FOR JAZZ

Center: Mehmet Okur is back for the Jazz. He will try to take Nene’ away from the basket but shooting a lot outside which will open the paint for Boozer & Millsap. Okur played in 73 games (all starts) for the Jazz this year and he averaged 29.4 minutes, 13.5 points, 7.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 blocked shots per game. He is a big key for the Jazz in this series.

Nene’ Hilario has really turned himself into a good center. He played in 82 games (all starts) for the Nuggets this season and he averaged 33.6 minutes, 13.8 points, 7.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.0 blocked shot per game. He will try to bully Okur in the paint in this series.

EDGE: EVEN

BENCH: The Jazz are going to have a tight bench in this series likely only giving Paul Millsap, Kyle Korver and Ronnie Price a lot of minutes. Millsap is by far the best player of this bunch as he can play C, PF or SF. He played in 82 games (8 starts) for the Jazz this year and he averaged 27.8 minutes, 11.6 points, 6.8 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.2 blocked shots per game. Kyle Korver is a flat out shooter for the Jazz as he set an all-time NBA record by hitting 53.6% of his three point attempts. Ronnie Price will give Deron Williams and Wes Matthews a breather when they need one.

The Nuggets got some good weapons on the bench with J.R. Smith, Ty Lawson and Chris “The Birdman” Andersen. Smith comes off the bench shooting the ball. He played in 75 games (0 starts) for the Nuggets this year and he averaged 27.7 minutes, 15.4 points, 3.1 rebounds, 2.4 assists and 1.3 steals per game. Ty Lawson will give Billups a break when he needs a blow. He played in 65 games (8 starts) as a rookie this year and he averaged 20.2 minutes, 8.3 points, 1.9 rebounds and 3.1 assists per game. The Birdman really brings a lot of energy to the court. He played in 76 games (0 starts) for the Nuggets this year and he averaged 22.3 minutes, 5.9 points, 6.4 rebounds, 0.4 assists and 1.9 blocked shots per game. Joey Graham and Johan Petro can also help out if the Nuggets want to go that deep on the bench.

EDGE: NUGGETS

COACH: Adrian Dantley is stepping in for George Karl who is still battling cancer. He has done a good job coaching the Nuggets and he has more talent then the Jazz do. It will be interesting to see how well be matches up against crusty old timer Jerry Sloan of the Jazz.

Jerry Sloan is one of the best coaches in NBA history despite never winning a championship. He led the Jazz to a 53-29 record (64.6%) during the regular season. He has a 1,096-659 (62.5%) record during the regular season in his time with the Utah Jazz. He also has a 92-94 (49.5%) record in his post season career.

EDGE: JAZZ

PREDICTION: I think these are two pretty evenly matched teams with the Jazz having the edge on the bench (Jerry Sloan). Still, I think the Nuggets are going to win this series in 7 games for head coach George Karl.

Starting small forward Andrei Kirilenko will miss at least the next two weeks as he aggravated his strained calf during practice. Kirilenko has played in 58 games (35 starts) this season for the Jazz in which he averaged 29.0 minutes, 11.9 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.7 assists, 1.4 steals and 1.2 blocked shots per game. The Jazz will really miss AK-47 as he was going to unleash his really good D on Carmelo Anthony. That job will now fall to C.J. Miles. Miles played in 63 games (28 starts) this season for the Jazz and he averaged 23.8 minutes, 9.9 points, 2.7 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.