Giricek then missed a jumper on the other end, and Yao — who went to the line because of a loose-ball foul on Boozer — hit two more freebies as Houston used a 6-0 mini run for all the separation it would need.

The Rockets got points on each of their last five possessions of the game, and that was plenty to hold off a Utah team that shot just 17 free throws compared to Houston's 38.

Kirilenko was scoreless on three attempts from the field and finished with three rebounds and two blocks, logging just 18 minutes — including only two early in the fourth quarter — one day after he shed tears over his reduced role.

Kirilenko never did get a chance at guarding McGrady, though Giricek, starting shooting guard Derek Fisher, starting point guard Deron Williams and backup small forward Matt Harpring all did.

None of that seemed to bother McGrady, who is averaging 27 points per game so far in the series.

As for Yao, he was guarded admirably on the defensive end by Okur — who was hit with at least a couple seemingly ticky-tack fouls.

But that appeared to take its toll on Okur on the offensive end of the floor, as the All-Star center wound up more than 13 points below his regular-season scoring average.

Meanwhile, Houston was able to win despite shooting just 36.1 percent (30-of-83) from the field — nearly 10 percent shy of the Jazz's percentage.

They made up the difference on the line, though, hitting 89.5 percent of their free throws. And there was a reason they were shooting so often from there, Rockets small forward Shane Battier suggested.

"Obviously we didn't really have a shooting clinic," he said. "(But) we tried to go to the rack a little bit more.

"We know that if we go to the basket, we have to go really hard — because you're going to get fouled," Battier added. "They (the Jazz) are a very physical defensive team, and a lot of teams don't want to accept that challenge. To win in the playoffs, you have to."

And, at least for one night, the Rockets did just that — nullifying Boozer's best efforts to render moot the issue of such a wide free-throw gap.

"We're trying to stay in the ballgame," Sloan said, "and they are going to the free-throw line a great deal — and that is difficult for us, and that will hurt any team."

NBA playoffs

UTAH vs. HOUSTON

Game 1: Rockets 84, Jazz 75

Game 2: Rockets 98, Jazz 90

Houston leads series, 2-0

Game 3: Thursday, at Utah, 7 p.m. (KJZZ, NBATV)

Game 4: Saturday, at Utah, 8:30 p.m. (KJZZ, ESPN)

Game 5: Monday, at Houston, TBD (KJZZ)*

Game 6: May 3, at Utah, TBD (KJZZ)*

Game 7: May 5, at Houston, TBD (KJZZ, TNT)*

*If necessary

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E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com