NEW YORK — Gordon Hayward scored 30 points and Rudy Gobert had 15 points and 16 rebounds, helping the Utah Jazz pull away to beat the Brooklyn Nets 101-89 on Monday night.
Rodney Hood and Shelvin Mack also scored 15 points each for the Jazz.
Trevor Booker led the Nets with 17 points and 15 rebounds. Brook Lopez scored 14 points.
The game was tied 70-70 after three quarters, but Utah’s Joe Ingles and Raul Neto opened the fourth with consecutive buckets and the Jazz never trailed again. They extended their lead to 89-78 on Hood’s layup with 6:11 left, but the Nets pulled to 91-86 on Lopez’s dunk with 3:11 remaining.
Utah countered with a 9-1 run and took a game-high 13 point lead on Mack’s jumper with 1:09 left.
There were eight lead changes in the first quarter, but the Nets finished the session on an 8-2 run and took a 26-24 lead. They led by seven at one point in the second quarter but led 52-50 at the half.
The Jazz went on a 12-3 run and tied the game at 65 on Hayward’s two free throws with 1:17 left in the third. He followed that with another two free throws and a 3-pointer to give Utah a 70-67.
Joe Harris followed with a jumper and Rondae Hollis-Jefferson made a free throw to knot it at 70.
Isaiah Whitehead scored 12 points and Hollis-Jefferson finished with 11 for the Nets.
TIP-INS:
Jazz: At 22-13, Utah has posted its best record after 35 games since the 2010-11 team went 24-11. The Jazz finished 39-43 that season and failed to make the playoffs.
Nets: Only Lopez or Booker scored a point for the Nets until Hollis-Jefferson made a field goal with 2:28 remaining in the first quarter.
JOHNSON RETURNS
Joe Johnson, who was waived by the Nets on Feb. 25 last season, made his first appearance against his former team in Brooklyn. In four seasons as a Net, Johnson played in 288 games, averaging 14.7 points, 3.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists per game. He was an All-Star in 2014 and ranks fourth on the team’s 3-point field goal list with 516.
AIL-LIN
Jeremy Lin strained his left hamstring for the second time this season on Dec. 26 vs. Charlotte and has not played since. “There’s no timetable because it’s hard to predict,” Lin said before the game. “It’s in a different area, completely the other side. Hurt a lot less when it happened, so I’m definitely encouraged.” Lin has only played in 12 games this season.
NEW YEAR’S GRIEVE
The Nets had won their previous four games to open the calendar year, all played on Jan. 2. Those victories — against Boston, Orlando and Oklahoma City (twice) — all came on the road.
UP NEXT
Jazz: Utah visits Boston on Tuesday night. The Jazz have dropped eight straight to the Celtics in Boston, notching their last victory there on March 14, 2008 (110-92). The teams have not met yet this season and will play again in Utah on Feb. 11.
Nets: Brooklyn visits Indiana on Thursday night. The teams have split their two meetings this season and will play again in Brooklyn on Feb. 3. The Pacers have beaten the Nets three straight in Indianapolis.
