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Korver, Williams lead Jazz to rare road win

Mar 8, 2008 - 7:41 AM PHOENIX (Ticker) -- The Utah Jazz's acquisition of sharpshooter Kyle Korver may be the most underrated of all the big trades this season. The Phoenix Suns certainly felt his impact on Friday.

Korver scored all 14 of his points in the fourth quarter and Deron Williams added 25 and 15 assists to lead the Jazz to a 126-118 victory over the Suns on Friday.

Mehmet Okur finished with 25 points and 14 rebounds and Carlos Boozer chipped in 23 points for Utah, which earned its first road victory over a fellow Western Conference playoff contender since an Opening Night win over the Golden State Warriors on October 30.

The best home team in the NBA at 27-3, the Jazz have had problems all season on the road, and entered Friday's game with losses in three of their past four tilts away from EnergySolutions Arena.

Korver made the road struggles seem like a distant memory in the final quarter, knocking down a jumper on Utah's first possession of the period and giving the club a 100-98 lead with 7:37 remaining after knocking down three straight free throws.

"We scored the whole game, we just had a tough time getting stops," Korver said. "Finally in the fourth quarter, we got some stops and that set up some wide-open shots and we were able to take advantage of them. We have a lot of confidence in our system and our personnel, so we had to break it down."

The Suns refused to quit, as their big trade deadline acquisition, Shaquille O'Neal, tied the game with an emphatic dunk on the ensuing possession.

The Jazz continued to trade baskets with the Suns down the stretch before taking the lead for good on a pair of free throws from Korver to make it 116-114 with 2:09 remaining.

"You are not going to stop them but you got to keep playing to give yourself a chance," Utah coach Jerry Sloan said. "Sometimes, on defense, we didn't do that. We finally stayed together, and that is what you like to see."

Boozer effectively sealed the win with 30 seconds remaining when he banked in an eight-foot jumper as the shot clock expired to push the lead to 122-118, and Korver and Okur each hit two free throws in the final 15 seconds.

"We were just aggressive. I thought we did a great job of being aggressive in the second half," Boozer said. "We were more aggressive and did a great job of hitting free throws late."

Williams got the better of Steve Nash, who finished with 17 points and 15 assists, but turned the ball over after Boozer's bank shot.

"We have always had success against the Suns," Williams said. "We did a good job in the first half defending them and did a better job in the second half, especially in that fourth quarter."

Amare Stoudemire led the way with 37 points - marking a career high with his 15th consecutive game scoring 20 or more.

"The offense is there, we just need to man up," Stoudemire said. "We can't allow guys to get whatever they want out there. They were breaking us down getting to the basket and getting whatever they wanted."

O'Neal had added 20 points for Phoenix, which fell to 3-6 with the former All-Star in the lineup.

"Shaq is playing well. All the things we did the trade for are happening," Suns coach Mike D'Antoni said. "We've just got to find a way to defend. We haven't been able to stop people."