Shorthanded Jazz get hot, rout Lakers

With Andrei Kirilenko recording his third career triple-double, Deron Williams setting a new career-high scoring total and Kyrylo Fesenko making a most-entertaining NBA debut, perhaps the suits over at ESPN will be willing to overlook the fact the Jazz failed to deliver two marquee names.

And take that, Kobe Bryant, the Jazz — missing injured Carlos Boozer and Mehmet Okur — had to be thinking about ending a three-game losing streak to the Los Angeles Lakers with a particularly pleasing 120-96 win in Friday night's nationally televised game at EnergySolutions Arena.

"It was (satisfying), especially the way he beat us last time," said Williams, whose Jazz lost to the Lakers when Bryant scored 33 in early November.

Bryant, the NBA's No. 2 scorer coming into the game, exited with three minutes and 37 seconds remaining, 28 points on 10-of-19 field shooting to his credit but the Jazz leading 114-90.

"We did a pretty solid job on Kobe," Williams. "He had 28, but at least he didn't have 50."

Less than 30 seconds after Bryant sat, Kirilenko chunked a fullcourt pass to Williams for a layup that gave the Jazz point guard his career-high 35th point — topping his previous best by a couple.

"I just told (Boozer) I was gonna try for 40," Williams joked. "That's what he averages (actually 25.4), so I had to make up for him and (Okur).

"I just tried to be aggressive," he added. "I saw a lot of lanes open up in the first quarter, got a lot of confidence that way."

After nearly missing a couple earlier this season, meanwhile, Kirilenko wound up with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 11 assists for his first triple-double since March 2006 (vs. Sacramento).

"A.K. played his best game of the season," Williams said. "He just did everything. He was aggressive on the offensive end, which we need him to continue to do. He hit shots, he blocked shots, he passed."

And with that, the 12-5 Jazz pushed their home winning streak to seven straight.

They did it with Jarron Collins starting at center and Paul Millsap at power forward, using a different opening lineup for the first time this season.

That's because two key bigs really were hurting. Boozer — who started the night as the NBA's third-leading scorer, trailing only Bryant and leader LeBron James — sat behind the Jazz bench with a right ankle sprained in last Wednesday's road trip-closing victory at Philadelphia.