Misery continues: Jazz can't find a win

SEATTLE — Just when it seemed they would finally get it right, the Jazz left Seattle shaking their heads.

Utah's run of misery against three of the West's early season best started with a blowout loss at San Antonio last Saturday. It continued with Tuesday's Delta Center loss to Phoenix, one in which they hung in until the latter half of the final quarter.

Then came Wednesday night and a meeting with the now 14-3 Seattle SuperSonics, runaway leaders of the NBA's new Northwest Division.

No way coach Jerry Sloan's struggling club would find a way to win, was there?

Well, almost. But not quite.

Despite a stirring fourth-quarter performance from Jazz big man Mehmet Okur, Seattle forced overtime and went on to win 129-119 at Key Arena.

"We felt sorry for ourselves," Sloan said, "when we went back out (for overtime) - because we hadn't won in (regulation)."

Carlos Boozer gave Utah a three-point cushion at 110-107 by hitting two free throws with 18.2 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter, but Seattle forced overtime when 6-foot-10 forward Vladimir Radmanovic nailed a 3-pointer with 10.5 seconds to go to tie it at 110.

Ray Allen kicked a pass to Radmanovic, who stepped under a flailing Boozer before unleashing his successful trey try.

Jazz point guard Howard Eisley, who finished as starter Carlos Arroyo watched from the bench, drove for an off-balance layup and one more final fling to try to win at the end of regulation.

Neither, however, fell.

The Jazz, though, did.

Early in the five-minute extra session, Eisley hit a trey to put Utah up 115-114.

But that's when the long distance-shooting Sonics really dialed in, following Danny Fortson's putback and Rashard Lewis' steal of errant Eisley pass and ensuing fastbreak dunk with 3-pointers from both Allen and Antonio Daniels.

"This is a very difficult team to play against," Sloan said of the Sonics, who came in shooting an NBA-best 39.2 from behind the arc, "especially with the way they shoot the ball."

All the poise shown in the fourth quarter was absent in overtime for the 8-8 Jazz, who have now lost three straight, five of their last six and seven of their last nine overall.