First Round: Houston vs. Utah

Game 1: at Houston, Andrei Kirilenko scored 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting, dished 3 assists and had 2 steals in a 93-82 victory. The Jazz held Rockets star Tracy McGrady to 20 points on 7-for-21 shooting, and got away with the victory even though they allowed Shane Battier to score a game-high 22 points and power forward Luis Scola had a 14-point, 13-rebound double-double. Utah point guard Deron Williams also had a double-double, finishing with 20 points and 10 assists.

Game 2: Deron Williams led the Jazz with 22 points on 8-of-15 shooting, Mehmet Okur finished with a 16-point, 16-rebound double-double, and the Jazz squeaked by the Rockets in Houston again, this time on a timely jump shot by backup Kyle Korver. Korver missed a jumper that hit the side of the backboard in a possession late in the game for Utah, but Kirilenko got the rebound and immediately passed it back to Korver, who ate the shot clock with 20.2 seconds left in the game. McGrady scored 23 points in the game, but went 0-for-4 in the fourth quarter.

Game 3: Rockets reserve Carl Landry blocked a last-second Williams layup to preserve a 94-92 win in Salt Lake City. McGrady scored seven straight points in the fourth quarter to guide the Rockets to victory. Williams scored 21 first-half points, including 16 of Utah's first 27 for a game-high 28. Utah shot 13-for-33 from the charity stripe in the loss.

Game 4: The home team won for the first time in the series on its home court as the Jazz beat the Rockets 86-82, taking a 3-1 series advantage. The Jazz had a 16-point lead in the third whittled down to one, but the team finished off the Rockets at the free throw line. Williams scored a team-high 17 points, Okur had a 14-point, 18-rebound double-double and Carlos Boozer contributed with a double-double of his own, finishing with 14 points and 14 rebounds.

Game 5: Led by a 10-point third quarter from McGrady, the Rockets drubbed Utah 95-69 to send the series back to Salt Lake City for game 6. McGrady shot 13-for-26 from the field and scored 29 points in his most productive game of the series. Utah was never closer than 15 in the fourth quarter. Boozer led the Jazz with 19 points, but shot 8-of-18 from the field.