Utah Jazz: Give ball to Carlos Boozer in 2nd half, and he delivers

SALT LAKE CITY — Carlos Boozer had a perfect shooting night Wednesday in the first half against the Charlotte Bobcats at EnergySolutions Arena. The Utah Jazz power forward went 6-for-6 from the field and made his only free throw.

Still, Utah trailed by 11 at the half.

The solution to the Jazz's first-half offensive problems seemed simple. They just needed to get Boozer the ball more often.

"(Boozer) was great the whole game," said Jazz point guard Deron Williams. "He was 6-for-6 in the first half. We needed to get him the ball more. We came out and did that in the second half."

Boozer scored 14 points in the third quarter alone as the Jazz erased Charlotte's lead and then held on in the fourth for a 102-93 victory.

"I just was being aggressive," said Boozer. "I felt like I had an advantage, and I told Willie (Williams) to keep coming to me, and he did. Thank God the ball kept going in."

Boozer, who had been the subject of numerous trade rumors right up until last week's NBA trade deadline, finished with a game-high 33 points. He missed just three of his 16 shots from the field and was a beast on the boards, as well, grabbing 16 rebounds.

Boozer, in the four games since the trade deadline, is averaging 24.5 points and 14 rebounds — five points and three boards better than his season averages.

"I'm comfortable, and there's nothing to worry about — except you guys," said Boozer, joking with media members when asked about his outstanding play after the trade deadline.

Boozer's teammates certainly aren't surprised by his fine play of late.

"(Boozer) is an incredible player," said Jazz rookie Wesley Matthews.

"I can't believe that he wasn't an All-Star. He's playing like it. He's really putting us on his back right now, and he's having great games for us. That's what we need right now."

Williams put it this way: "When (Boozer) is playing so well, it opens up a lot more things for us."

For instance, if teams are concentrating on Boozer inside, it gives the Jazz's perimeter shooters open shots from 3-point range. That was the case in the fourth quarter on Wednesday, when Kyle Korver hit four treys to help the Jazz build a double-digit lead late in the game against the Bobcats.

Utah, one of the hottest teams in the NBA in recent weeks, was coming off a rare loss on Monday night to Atlanta.

"We're happy to be back on track," said Boozer.

e-mail: lojo@desnews.com