Thursday, April 22, 2010

The Indomitable Will

For those of you who have been in a deep coma since Monday, The Utah Jazz beat the Denver Nuggets 114-111 in Game 2. With Andrei Kirilenko still out and Mehmet Okur done for several months, not many "experts" were giving the Jazz a chance to pull out a victory on the road in Game 2. That's what made Monday night's game so memorable.

Deron Williams played out of his mind. He finished with 33 points (including 16-18 from the free throw line) and 14 assists. Not even John Stockton ever had those numbers in a playoff road victory. Williams was the best player on the court, and he didn't let his team down. C.J. Miles and Wes Matthews did a great job against Carmelo Anthony, forcing him to shoot 9-25 from the field and foul out in the last minute of a very tight game. Everybody on the Jazz hit the big shots when it counted (including Kyle Korver's huge three-pointer to give the Jazz a two-point lead in the final minute), and everybody played tough defense against the crazy Nuggets offense. Every Jazz fan should write down their experience from this game, because we will be telling our great-grandchildren about it. And if you don't, you're not a Jazz fan.

The next game is this Friday in Salt Lake City. Hopefully everybody has enough time to rest and recover from a very draining game in Denver. Hopefully the crowd is crazy; I want to see signs with swear words and personal attacks against Carmelo. Jazz Nation ought to be infused with energy, excitement, and hope after what happened in Game 2. With Williams on our side, we always have a chance.

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