Jazz remain cool and win

It was Boozer who ultimately was responsible for Artest's ejection, as the two tussled during a free-throw attempt by 15-point bench scorer Kyle Korver and Artest — because he had been tagged with his second technical foul — wound up getting the heave-ho.

By that time, Boozer was well on his way to a 15-for-19 shooting night whose shot at perfection came to a close only when he missed a reverse layup try — his 14th attempt from the field — with a second remaining in the third quarter.

Boozer, whose solid and mostly inside shooting help the Jazz finish 57.7 percent from the field as a team, claimed not to know he had made 13-of-13 to that point.

"I didn't know how many I made in a row," he said. "I was just trying to play."

Ditto on the not-clued-in front for Jazz coach Jerry Sloan, who insisted his only focus was ensuring that Utah win for the ninth time in its last 11 games overall.

"Sometimes I'm watching the game and I'm not aware of those things," he said. "I know (retired point guard) John Stockton, one time, I took him out of a game. He had about 22 or 23 assists."

You can bet your bottom dollar, though, that Sloan was well aware of Artest and all of his oddball behavior.

"It's not a matter of showing how powerful you are or anything like that," the Jazz coach said. "Just play basketball. That's how you win."

Asked if he thought the referees should have booted Artest much earlier, Sloan said, "That's their decision. That's a $10,000 fine for me, and I don't need it."

The Jazz, though, certainly welcomed all they got from Boozer, Kirilenko and Co. — and even the unintended boost from Artest.

Williams said it best, and as quietly as could be.

"We knew," he said, "that we needed this win."

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E-mail: tbuckley@desnews.com