JazzFan 4 Life

The Jazz are getting hot again, after tonight's 105-87 win over the Celtics. Utah has won 8 of its last 9 games and followed up last night's big win over Denver with a drubbing of Boston at Energy Solutions Arena. Let's get into it ...

SWEET MUSIC

Boozer working his way back (16 points, 10 rebounds, 4 assists in 23 minutes): Boozer played just 12 minutes last night, finishing with 10 points. Tonight he played mostly in the 1st and 4th quarters and doesn't seem to show any signs of rust around the basket. His jumper looked a little off (particularly when he was open), so he mostly banged his way to his points tonight.

Fisher picks up the slack (21 points on 8-11 shooting): Deron Williams had 2 points on 1-10 FGs, so Fisher took it upon himself to take some shots ... and make them. He played more minutes than Williams tonight (31 minutes for Fisher to Williams' 27 minutes) and looked solid. He moved the ball, played defense (2 steals) and was teamed with Gordan Giricek to keep most of Boston's backcourt playing defense on a night when I'm sure they didn't think they'd have to.

Millsap keeps hustlin' (10 points, 8 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 blocks): He got 14 shots tonight (which is like 30 for Boozer/Okur/Williams) and although he only made 5 of them, he kept playing defense, running the floor and not playing outside his role. As Boozer starts to work his way back to his normal 28-32 minutes a night, Millsap will resume his role as the energy guy off the bench. But there's gotta be some thought in Jerry Sloan's mind that Millsap deserves to play crunch time minutes if Andrei Kirilenko can't get it together by late March.

SOUR NOTES

What's up with Okur/Kirilenko? All we know is that these guys missed the game (Okur for his back; Kirilenko for his knee). But how serious is Okur's injury? Will he be back in the lineup soon or will this soon balloon into an injury of Boozer-like proportions? AK-47 is always hurt, but he had knee problems two years ago and has had flare-ups with the injury since then. Maybe this injury will help Millsap and Ronnie Brewer get some more minutes, but the Jazz need to get AK-47 back and get his confidence back up. They won't make a long playoff run if he's not a factor.

The second and final game of this year's series against the Celtics. Here's a quick preview ...

What happened last time: Jazz win, 107-100, at TD Banknorth Garden. The Jazz mostly pulled away in the second and third quarters and were led by Deron Williams (26 pts, 14 ast), Carlos Boozer (24 pts, 14 reb, 4 ast) and Mehmet Okur (23 pts, 4-5 on 3-pointers). The Celtics' Paul Pierce went for 30 points and Wally Szczerbiak chipped in with 14 while Delonte West, Ryan Gomes, Kedrick Perkins and Rajon Rondo all had 10-11 points apiece.

What to expect this time: For one thing, Celtics PF Al Jefferson has gone from an afterthought in the offense (behind Pierce/Szczerbiak/Green/et al) to likely their No. 2 option on offense (behind Pierce). Jefferson is averaging 15.4 ppg and 11.6 rpg this month and has developed into a solid big man in what has been a wasted season for the Celtics. Utah likely won't have Okur tonight (and possibly Andrei Kirilenko), so that might factor into the offense. However, Deron Williams has stepped up this month (21.3 ppg) and Boozer should get more than the 12 minutes he played yesterday in Denver. If the Jazz can stick with Pierce on defense, Jefferson and the rest of the Celtics shouldn't be a problem. Keep an eye on tonight's matchup between Paul Millsap and Jefferson; it could be a preview of two young, talented big men.

Prediction: Jazz win, 105-92.

Utah won the last meeting between these teams, 107-100, earlier this season. Boston was 1-4 at that point and Utah was 5-1, and since then, things have pretty much stayed the same for both teams. Here's a look at what the Boston media has to say:

* Wally Szczerbiak definitely won't play tonight, something that coach Doc Rivers expected.

* The Celtics took a beating last night at the hands of the Lakers and neither Rivers nor Paul Pierce were pleased with the effort.

* Rumor is people won't be surprised if Pierce asks for a trade in the offseason if the Celtics don't make a major trade.