The Associated Press
LOS ANGELES–The only thing stopping Gordon Hayward in the playoffs was a case of food poisoning.
Utah’s all-star forward averaged 23.7 points–breaking out for a career-high 40 in Game 3–over seven games to propel the Jazz into the second round of the playoffs with a 104-91 victory over the L.A. Clippers yesterday.
Hayward fell ill in Game 4 and played just nine minutes in Utah’s win. Despite feeling shaky and weak-legged, he returned in Game 5 to score 27 points in another victory.
Bring on Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, and the top-seeded Golden State Warriors.
“You can see his confidence out there,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said of Hayward.
“He’s played through missed shots, contact, hot streaks, you name it.
“He’s handled that with poise, and he’s a heck of an offensive player,” Snyder added.
“He’s so versatile that he’s hard to guard, and we try to use him in a way that allows him to shine in those situations.”
Hayward has never been to the Western Conference semi-finals.
“I’m sure people are going to talk about that,” he said. “But we’re moving forward as a team, and we’ll use these experiences to help us.”
Game 1 goes tomorrow night in Oakland.
The Warriors have been resting and waiting since last Monday to find out their opponent while the fifth-seeded Jazz played the only first-round series that went the distance.
“We come off a Game 7 win, you feel good, you have some momentum,” noted Hayward, who scored 26 points yesterday.
“You can kind of keep it rolling a little bit.”
The Jazz won three of four on the road in the opening round, including Game 7 in L.A.
It was a big boost of confidence for a team that hadn’t won a playoff series since 2010.
“We’ve never been in the second round, so now that’s another first,” Snyder said.
“We don’t have to prove that we’re not young and inexperienced. We are,” he added.
“There’s nothing wrong with that. Maybe that can be an advantage in some way.”
“We’ve just got to keep pounding away,” said George Hill. “Anything is possible.
“It’s going to take all 15 guys,” he stressed.
The Warriors, meanwhile, swept Portland 4-0 in their first-round series that ended a week ago.
The time off has allowed them to heal some minor injuries.
Elsewhere in the NBA, Boston beat Washington 123-111 to lead their best-of-seven Eastern Conference semi-final series 1-0.
The Raptors open their second-round series tonight in Cleveland.
