Home sweet hope: Jazz look back to '07 as proof series isn't over

They're about to face Los Angeles in home-sweet-Salt Lake City, but the underdog Utah Jazz can look to Texas for a rallying cry now that they're down a couple of games to the Lakers in their first-round playoff series.

Remember Davey Crockett and the Alamo?

Yikes. Don't go there. Wrong part of Texas — anything to do with San Antonio is very wrong for the Jazz, truth be told. Head, instead, a bit further east.

In need of a morale boost heading into pivotal Game 3 against L.A. tonight at EnergySolutions Arena, some Jazz players have actually been thinking about, yep, Houston. Ah, nothing like recent memories of taking on (and down) the Rockets in the playoffs to give the Jazz a shot of self-esteem.

Remembering how they bounced back from a similar slow start to eventually claim that 2007 first-round classic in seven games — the only time Utah has ever won a series after losing the first two contests in 13 attempts — is giving the Jazz some hope.

"We've been here before," Jazz power forward Carlos Boozer said. "Two years ago, we were down 0-2 to Houston and we came back and won both games at home.

"So, we've got to rely on that," Boozer added, "look at some of that experience that we went through, come together as a team and kick butt (tonight)."

"Hopefully," added Jazz starting small forward Kyle Korver, who wasn't on the squad back then, "that is something we can as a team look back on and try to emulate."

Now if they can only get Kobe Bryant — or heck, even Trevor Ariza or Shannon Brown — to emulate Tracy McGrady's postseason play, they really might be in business.

But in reality, the Jazz don't even need to travel back in their minds to get a positive flow to the mojo. Just last year in the Western Conference semifinals, Utah held serve in Games 3 and 4 at ESA after losing the first two at Staples Center. (They might try to overlook how the Lakers returned to clinch the series with a 123-115 Game 6 win in Utah, however.)

"We've beaten them in past years here before," Korver said. "They're a very good team, but they're beatable. We just have to go out there and play really well — and we're capable of doing that."

Especially — more like: ESPECIALLY — at home. The Jazz might have fallen in L.A. 11 straight times, but they've beaten the Lakers three out of their last four times in Utah overall and have claimed seven of eight postseason meetings here. They also had one of the better NBA records at home this season at 33-8, including a 113-109 win over the Lakers in February.