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Jazz, Blazers collide in Salt Lake City

Dec 27, 2010 - 4:11 PM (Sports Network) - The Utah Jazz shoot for their sixth straight win over Northwest Division-rival Portland tonight when they entertain the Trail Blazers in Salt Lake City.

Utah just finished a four-game road trip with three consecutive wins, the last of which was a 112-107 triumph in Minnesota on Wednesday. Deron Williams scored 25 points while Paul Millsap and Al Jefferson had 23 apiece and the Jazz overcame a 15-point deficit in the final 12:16 for a 112-107 victory in that one.

With the win Utah head coach Jerry Sloan moved past Pat Riley and into third place alone on the all-time NBA wins list with No. 1,211. Sloan is now 121 victories shy of Lenny Wilkens for second place on the wins list. Don Nelson is the all-time leader at 1,335 victories.

"It's not about me," Sloan said. "It's more about what we try to do as a staff."

Andrei Kirilenko had 16 points and Millsap added a team-high 11 rebounds for the Jazz, who have won four of their last five overall to improve to 13-4 in their last 17 games.

The Blazers, meanwhile, continue to struggle on the road, dropping the opener of a three-game road trip in Oakland on Saturday when Monta Ellis scored 39 points and David Lee added 21 to help Golden State rally for a 109-102 win over Portland.

Wesley Matthews poured in 25 points for Portland, which had a three-game winning streak halted. Andre Miller posted 12 points and 15 assists in defeat while Nicolas Batum tallied 18 points and 10 boards.

"He's very aggressive, he can flat out score," Trail Blazers head coach Nate McMillan said of Ellis. "He's fearless going to the basket. When he has his jump shot going, it's very tough to defend him."

Portland, which has dropped four straight and 11 of 13 on the road, will finish its trek in Denver on Tuesday. Then these two teams will meet again at the Rose Garden on Thursday.

The Jazz have won five in a row and 16 of 18 as the host in this series.