Jazz need to put together a winning streak

Utah lost five in a row from November 12-19 and dropped three straight from November 25 to December 1. The Jazz are 8-12 and sit in fourth place in the Northwest Division.

The Jazz will have their hands full on Monday as they welcome the always tough Detroit Pistons to the Delta Center. The Pistons have won six straight games overall and own a league-best 15-2 record. It is the first of two meetings between the clubs this season. The Pistons are scheduled to host the Jazz on January 7, 2006 at The Palace of Auburn Hills.

Detroit has won five of the last seven meetings against the Jazz. The Pistons have lost two straight at Utah.

The Jazz play the fourth contest of a five-game homestand Monday. On Friday, Rashard Lewis had 26 points and Ray Allen added 19 points to lead the Seattle SuperSonics over the Jazz, 106-90, at the Delta Center.

Andrei Kirilenko had 17 points and 11 rebounds in the loss to Seattle for the Jazz, who have dropped five of their last seven games overall. Devin Brown had 14 points and Jarron Collins had 13 points in defeat.

Utah, which will host the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday in the finale of the current stand, is 5-4 at home this season.

The Jazz will be playing the Blazers for the second time this season. On December 4th, Mehmet Okur dropped in 28 points and added eight rebounds to lead Utah past Portland, 98-93, at the Rose Garden.

Kirilenko, who missed seven straight games from November 12-29 because of an ankle injury, has scored in double-digits in three straight games. He is averaging 13.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and 4.7 assists in that span.