The Utah Jazz have a few good things to build off of their Game 1 109-98 loss to the Lakers: Utah got 56 points in the paint, outrebounded the Lakers by 17, took 22 more shots and rallied to make the game close down the stretch.
"We missed a lot of open shots we normally make," said Utah point guard Deron Williams.
And Utah's strategy for tonight's Game 2 - in which L.A. is a 6.5-point betting favorite with an over/under of 209.5 on WagerWeb.com - is simple: slow Kobe Bryant.
Yeah right.
The newly crowned NBA MVP played like one in the series opener, getting 38 points, six rebounds and seven assists. He did much of his damage from the free throw line, making a franchise playoff-record 21 in 23 attempts.
"You can't let him have 23 free throws, that are for sure," Utah's Matt Harpring said. "You've got to make him hit shots, and do our best to stay in front of him without fouling."
The Jazz committed 34 personal fouls, leading to the Lakers' 38-of-46 effort from the line. Utah made 22 of 30 free throws.
Utah also will need to shoot better than 37 percent from the field, as it did in Game 1, and improve upon 4-for-19 from beyond the 3-point line.
"We had some pretty good executed plays but couldn't make shots," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said.Forward Carlos Boozer will need to step up for the Jazz. The Jazz sense the opportunity to hammer the Lakers inside, with Boozer matched up against Pau Gasol or Lamar Odom, but their All-Star forward has struggled so far in the playoffs. It has been 15 games and counting since Boozer last scored more than 21 points.
He has averaged 15.9 points on 42.9 percent shooting in the playoffs, compared with 21.1 points on 54.7 percent shooting in the regular season. Boozer finished with 15 points and 14 rebounds in Game 1 against the Lakers but committed seven turnovers and fouled out.
"I've struggled a little bit with my shot in the playoffs and I'm aware of that," Boozer said, "but I'm also ware that I'm playing really good basketball, just not making my jump shots, so I'm hoping my jump shot will start falling soon."
Mehmet Okur was Utah's best player in Game 1, with 21 points and 19 rebounds.
The Lakers have won three of their last four Game 2s in the playoffs, and are 3-0 at home in this year's postseason. Utah haw won two of its last three Game 2s in the postseason. The Jazz are 2-2 on the road in this year's playoffs.
Meanwhile, Lakers center Andrew Bynum, who is not expected to return this season, is getting another medical opinion on his left knee in hopes of getting back possibly by the NBA finals. Bynum, 20, has been sidelined since Jan. 13 because of a bone bruise in his left knee and briefly dislocated kneecap. He still feels pain in the knee, making surgery a prime option.
Betting trends: Since a mini-slump late in the regular season, the Lakers are 9-2 ATS over their last 11 games, including the playoffs. ... Over is 20-7 in Utah's last 27 vs. NBA Pacific. ... Home team is 8-2 ATS in the last 10 meetings. ... Over is 6-2 in the last 8 meetings in Los Angeles.
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