OAKLAND — The side of his head still stinging after a late-game collision with Golden State point guard Baron Davis, Jazz guard Derek Fisher gave his ex-Warrior teammate the benefit of the doubt Sunday.

"Even if it was a cheap shot, or normally something he wouldn't do, I definitely know that he was not intending to injure me or harm me or anything like that," Fisher said of a somewhat controversial play that happened late during Utah's 115-101 win over the Warriors in Game 4 of the Western Conference semifinal final series.

"I think when you're in a situation where you're frustrated," Fisher added, "things haven't gone well, sometimes you do things."

Fisher, who spent two seasons with Golden State before joining Utah last summer, also afforded a break to ex-teammate Jason Richardson, who was ejected with a flagrant-2 foul after clocking Mehmet Okur as the Jazz center went for an ill-advised late-game dunk.

"Even the play with Jason — you know, Jason is not a dirty play either," Fisher said. "But, in the playoffs, it's frustration. Those things happen.

"That's a part of this time of year," he added. "(But) we definitely don't want to try to carry any of that over into (Game 5) on Tuesday. We just want to stay focused on what's happening during the game on the court as far as basketball, and we'll be okay."

BROWN OUT: Jazz reserve point guard Dee Brown did not dress for Game 4, marking the second straight game he's missed since spraining his neck during a scary-looking collision with Okur in the opening quarter of Game 2.

"Over the years I've ... seen some guys take some tremendous spills," Jazz coach Jerry Sloan said Sunday. "Some guys have bounced right up, because they hit just right. His, after looking it, it could have been really a tough situation.

"I hate to think about it."

Brown did not fully participate in the Jazz's morning shootaround Sunday, and his status for Game 5 remains uncertain.

With Brown out, swingman C.J. Miles again was on Utah's active list.

GAME FIVE: Because Chicago beat Detroit on Sunday and forced a Game 5 between the Bulls and Pistons, start time for Game 5 of the Jazz-Warriors series is 8:30 p.m. Tuesday at EnergySolutions Arena.

Because the game is being carried by TNT, local affiliate KJZZ is contractually prohibited from showing the game too.

MISC.: Jazz power forward Carlos Boozer was the only player from either team to hit double digits before the third quarter of Game 4, scoring 10 points in the opening half. He finished with a game-high 34 points. ... Attendance Sunday was announced at 20,679, marking a new Warriors franchise single-game record — and surpassing the previous high, from earlier this postseason, by two. According to the Warriors, it's largest-ever crowd to witness a basketball game in the state of California. Moreover, it's well above the listed Oracle Arena capacity of 19,596 ... All five Jazz starters scored in double figures Sunday, and Fisher's 21 points were a personal series high.

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E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com