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Gordon Hayward scored a game-high 26 points in Utah's 97-88 win over the Denver Nuggets on Friday night. He grabbed five rebounds and handed out four assists. He hit four 3-pointers, and did a bit of everything in 35 minutes.

And yet, his defining play against Denver was the shot he didn't take.

Many would've a look at the basket on the pass Hayward made to Trevor Booker for the 3-pointer that essentially won the game for the Jazz. With 2:16 remaining, Hayward hit Booker in the corner. That make gave Utah a 93-88 lead, and the Nuggets wouldn't come any closer.

It was just another play in a series of plays that Hayward made down the stretch.

"Well, I think he played really good defense," Jazz coach Quin Snyder said. "When he's locked in defensively, I think it just makes him more aggressive on offense. The thing I liked was that he made the right play. When the drive was there, he took it. When the shot was there, he took it. He facilitated tonight, and then some."

Hayward scored eight of his points in the fourth quarter, which, in some ways, threw away a few of his demons. He faltered at the end of losses this week against the Oklahoma City Thunder and the New Orleans Pelicans. On Friday night, every play he needed to make, he seemed successful.

Most important, Hayward had a force on the game that the Nuggets couldn't match. Hayward was the best player on the floor for most of the 35 minutes he played; his plus-20 being the stat that proves this theory. He was plus-13 in the fourth, and entered the game in the fourth with his team trailing by four points.

"I thought I took advantage of some good situations," Hayward said. "I had a smaller guy on me a lot [Denver guard Jameer Nelson], and we just played that mismatch out. I got some good looks and open shots. I just kind of let the game come to me tonight."

Hayward's fourth quarter balanced what the Jazz did defensively, limiting the Nuggets to 15 points in the final 12 minutes. For the first time in awhile, the Jazz were the team making the right plays, and they forced their opponent to struggle when it mattered most.

"I give them credit," Nelson said. "They did what they needed to do to win the game. We didn't. We had opportunities, and we didn't get any defensive stops. They deserved to win because of it."

tjones@sltrib.com twitter: @tjonessltrib —

Storylines

R Gordon Hayward scored eight of his game-high 26 points in the fourth quarter.

• Hayward limited Denver star Danilo Gallinari to 11 points on 3-of-10 shooting.

• The Jazz snap a four-game losing streak.