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Los Angeles • The buzzer of Utah's 104-91 Game 7 win over the Los Angeles Clippers didn't produce a wild celebration from the Jazz, who instead calmly shook hands with the Clippers, tossed each other a few fist-bumps, and walked off the court.
Sunday's Game 7 road win over a veteran Los Angeles team allowed Utah its first series victory since 2010. It was the first Game 7 road win for the franchise since 2007, when Utah defeated the Houston Rockets in the first round.
Advancing to the second round isn't a surprise for this group. A year of adversity has made this team hardened in the face of any challenge. And beating the Clippers in Game 7 proved shockingly easy after six games of nail-biting finishes.
"We just tried to treat it as just another game," Utah forward Gordon Hayward said. "But our competitiveness took over. The nervousness went away, and we just had our adrenaline."
Utah won a series where it was forced to play three games without Rudy Gobert, had to rally from a 2-1 series deficit, had to win three times on the road, and win in Game 7 in spite of massive foul trouble that resulted in Gobert and Derrick Favors missing the finish.
From the start of training camp, the Jazz have fought through adversity, injuries, patchwork lineups and questions as to whether key players would be available and at their best once the postseason hit. So, when the Jazz lost Friday's Game 6 at home, they hardly flinched when some began to write the obituary on their season.
"It's been the story of our season," Gobert said. "Everything we've gone through has made us stronger. We've had so many injuries and other things go wrong. It speaks volumes about the character of the team."
The close losses of yesteryear, the experience gained from past failure — it's given this Jazz team resiliency as a group. That was important after Friday's Game 6 home loss, in which many thought the Jazz had blown their best chance to win the series.
But the staff and players saw it differently. They looked at them film of Games 5 and 6 and realized they missed a lot of open shots. They were confident that getting the same quality of shots from the perimeter in Game 7 would yield more favorable results.
"We thought if we cleaned some stuff up, we would have a chance," Hayward said.
That mentality allowed Utah to turn things around 180 degrees from Game 6 to Game 7. The Jazz went from their worst offensive performance of the series to their best. They went from their most frazzled game to their most poised one. And they did it at the right time.
Utah shot 50.6 percent from the field, and made 6 of 13 from 3-point range. The Jazz got to the free-throw line 23 times and made 18 of them. The offense produced 22 assists and they turned the ball over only 12 times. Whenever they needed a timely basket, they got one.
"We thought if we found some shots that we would be able to knock them down," Jazz guard Rodney Hood said. "It was fitting for us to get to a Game 7 and be able to play like this. We've had so many ups and downs this season. For us to come to their home court and win, this was one of those moments you don't forget."
The Jazz received big performances from several sources. Hayward scored 26 points, grabbed eight rebounds and added three assists. He shot 9 of 20 from the field, made all six of his free-throws and found a way through the Clippers' defense whenever needed in the fourth quarter.
Favors had his best game of the season, with 17 points and 11 rebounds on 8-of-11 shooting. He handed out three assists, and played the bulk of the center minutes with Gobert in foul trouble. The Jazz played him sparingly down the stretch of the regular season in an effort for him to get healthy; Game 7 validated that strategy.
George Hill's defense on Clippers All-Star guard Chris Paul proved huge, as Paul scored only 13 points while Hill scored 17 points to go with five assists and four rebounds. Joe Ingles scored 12 points and smothered J.J. Redick defensively. Hood scored 11 points, while Joe Johnson and Boris Diaw scored 10 points each.
The Jazz limited the Clippers to 43.8-percent shooting and 6 of 25 from 3-point range. Utah led by as much as 21 points and dominated the game from the second quarter on.
"I think Utah did a good job of shrinking the court," Paul said. "They didn't let me get to my spots."
Twitter: @tribjazz