Utah Jazz beat New Orleans Hornets, 95-84

This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2013, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.

The Utah Jazz have done their jobs by dispatching the New Orleans Hornets 95-83 on Friday night at EnergySolutions Arena.

Now, the waiting game begins.

With the Los Angeles Lakers facing off against the Memphis Grizzlies and that game being far from over, the Jazz won't know for at least an hour whether or not they are back into eighth place in the Western Conference and playoff position.

Against New Orleans, Utah pulled away with a good defensive second half. The Jazz took the lead for good in the second quarter behind the all-around brilliance of Paul Millsap and the hustle of DeMarre Carroll. The win goes a long way towards erasing the bitter taste of losing at home to Denver on Wednesday night in a decisive manner.

Utah wins its 40th game of the season against the Hornets. Gordon Hayward scored 23 points and hit five 3-pointers. Millsap scored 17 of his 20 points in the first half, and Derrick Favors made a big contribution off the bench as well, scoring 10 points, grabbing 10 rebounds and blocking six shots.

tjones@sltrib.com

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