Jazz, Rockets battle before playoff meeting

The Jazz captured the Northwest Division and are the fourth seed in the Western Conference, while Houston is No. 5 and finished in third place in the Southwest Division. The Rockets own home-court advantage in the best-of-seven series since they had a better regular-season record than Utah.

There is plenty of playoff history between the Jazz and Rockets. Houston defeated Utah in the first round of the postseason in 1995 and in the 1994 West finals. The Jazz knocked out the Rockets in the opening round of 1985 and 1998, and in the 1997 conference finals.

The Jazz are 2-1 against the Rockets this season and have captured three of the last four contests in the series. Houston has lost two straight and six of its last seven at Utah.

Utah ended a three-year playoff drought by qualifying for this year’s postseason. The Jazz last appeared in the playoffs in 2003, when they were eliminated in five games by the Sacramento Kings in the opening round.

On Monday, Carlos Boozer scored 26 points and grabbed 10 rebounds to lead the Jazz to a convincing 130-93 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers at EnergySolutions Arena.

Gordan Giricek added 21 points in the win for the Jazz. Paul Millsap and Mehmet Okur both had 16 points, while Deron Williams and Derek Fisher netted 13 apiece for the Jazz, who have won two of their last three games overall.

The Jazz are an impressive 30-10 at home this season. Boozer leads the team in scoring (21.1 ppg) and rebounding (11.8 rpg), while Williams has dished out a club-best 9.4 assists per game.

The Rockets are back in the postseason after a one-year absence. Houston has not won a playoff series since 1997. The Rockets last postseason series victory was when they defeated Seattle, 4-3, in the 1997 West semis.

Houston enters tonight’s contest on a five-game winning streak. Tracy McGrady posted 39 points, 11 rebounds and nine assists, as the Rockets held off the Phoenix Suns, 120-117, on Monday at the Toyota Center.

Yao Ming collected 34 points and nine boards for Houston, which has won 13 of its last 17 games overall and played its final home game of the campaign, finishing with a 28-13 mark at the Toyota Center. Shane Battier scored 17 points, and Rafer Alston contributed 11 points and nine assists.

The Rockets are a solid 24-16 as the visitor this season. They have won five in a row as the visitor.

Yao leads the Rockets in scoring (25.0 ppg) and rebounding (9.4 rpg), while McGrady has handed out a team-best 6.4 assists per contest.