SALT LAKE CITY — Houston guard James Harden led all scorers with 42 points, but forward Gordon Hayward and the Utah Jazz spoiled his big night with an important 117-114 overtime victory over the Rockets.
Hayward had 28 points, seven rebounds and five assists, and power forward Derrick Favors contributed 19 points and 12 rebounds for Utah.
Favors made a key put-back bucket late in overtime, and the Rockets missed two game-tying 3-point attempts in the final seconds.
The Jazz desperately needed to win after losing three of four games, including a tough 115-111 defeat at Portland on Sunday. Utah (28-28) replaced Houston (28-29) in the eighth spot of the Western Conference standings.
Harden hit 16 of 30 shots, but the Rockets couldn’t take the lead in overtime after extending the game with a nice comeback late in the fourth quarter.
Center Dwight Howard scored 13 points and grabbed 16 rebounds, forward Trevor Ariza added 18 points, and guard Patrick Beverley scored 14 in the loss.
Houston stayed in the game despite being outshot by the Jazz 51.4 percent to 41.4 percent. The Jazz committed 22 turnovers, leading to 29 points for the Rockets.
The Jazz led for most of the overtime session but couldn’t quite shake the Rockets. Beverley tied the game at 112-all with 1:13 remaining.
Utah answered right back, however, as guard Rodney Hood sank a 3-pointer over Howard for a 115-112 lead.
Harden quickly responded with a layup, but Favors followed a miss on the other end to put Utah back ahead 117-114.
Houston guard Jason Terry helped force overtime by hitting a game-tying corner 3-pointer with 11 seconds remaining.
Utah had a chance to win in regulation, but Hayward couldn’t shake a feistily defending Ariza. After the ball was poked away, the Jazz forward had to settle for a badly missed half-court heave at the buzzer.
Utah used a 7-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to take a 98-92 lead. The Rockets kept chipping away and seized a 101-100 lead after a 3-pointer by Ariza and free throws from Harden.
Hood responded with a 3-pointer, and the Jazz went up 105-101 after Favors blocked a shot on one end and made a bucket on the other end.
Harden kept Houston alive with a layup with 17.9 seconds remaining.
Hayward then did the Rockets a favor by splitting a pair of free throws, after which Terry tied it with his clutch shot in front of the Jazz bench.
The Jazz shot 58 percent in the first half but blew an opportunity to gain a big lead by making a slew of turnovers. Houston forced Utah into 16 first-half turnovers, converting them into 23 points.
Utah still held a 56-51 lead at the break, but it could’ve been much larger. The Rockets only had nine turnovers in the opening half, 14 in the game.
NOTES: Coach Quin Snyder made a change to the starting unit, replacing rookie PG Raul Neto with recently acquired Shelvin Mack. Snyder suggested before the game that this would be the lineup he’d stick with the rest of the season, saying, “I think there will be some consistency going forward.” … The Rockets kept their starting unit the same for the second game in a row after replacing PF Corey Brewer with Josh Smith. Interim coach J.B. Bickerstaff wanted another facilitator in his first group. “One of Josh’s greatest strengths is moving the ball. I think he complements Dwight (Howard) and James (Harden) really, really well,” Bickerstaff said. … Tuesday marked the five-year anniversary of the Jazz trading star PG Deron Williams to New Jersey in exchange for PF Derrick Favors, PG Devin Harris and draft picks. Williams and Harris are now both in Dallas.