Why is it when you're struggling a little, you get no breaks?
That's the situation for the Utah Jazz, who have lost two straight games on their current road trip and now get to face a well-rested Indiana Pacers team that hasn't played since Sunday.The Jazz and Pacers meet tonight at Market Square Arena. In last year's encounter here, Utah escaped with an overtime victory.
At the start of this trip, this looked like the toughest game, and nothing's happened to change that view. The Pacers concluded a four-game Western road trip Sunday with a loss to the Blazers; they went a disappointing 1-3 on that jaunt, with their only win coming against the expansion Vancouver Grizzlies.
No doubt the Pacers are glad to be home and eager to get back on track tonight.
Utah, meanwhile, is wondering how all that momentum from a seven-game winning streak disappeared so fast. Wednesday night's loss to the Charlotte Hornets dropped the Jazz into second place in the Midwest Division, a half game behind the San Antonio Spurs.
Asked if it bothered him to be knocked out of first place for the first time in weeks, Jazz forward Karl Malone said, "Yeah, sure. You want to be in first place and you want everything to be nice and smooth. But it doesn't always go like that. We have three more games we have to go out and win."
The key to this game may be which team's scorers rediscover their shooting touch first. Indiana gunner Reggie Miller shot 27.9 percent on that dismal road trip, while suffering from a sore wrist and sprained ankle.
"He has been banged up a lot," Pacers coach Larry Brown told Sportsline USA, "but I never question his courage. People take shots at him all the time. He practices every day, and he plays when he's hurt. Those are the things leaders do."
For the Jazz, the shooters in question are John Stockton and Chris Morris.
While continuing to pass like the league's best point guard, Stockton has made just six of 29 shots on this trip, averaging 5.7 points per game.
And Morris has made four of 21 shots, while throwing up some dreadful stuff, including a one-hand, over-the-head, no-look airball against the Hornets.
The Jazz and Pacers met just last week in Salt Lake City, Utah taking a 101-94 win.
Indiana pounded the Jazz on the boards, 46-33, and grabbed 24 offensive rebounds.