Mailman delivers, drops 35 points to defeat Denver Nuggets 107-105 SALT LAKEKarl Malone scored 6 of his 35 points in the last 2 minutes of the game including a fadeaway, 4 clutch free throws, 1 assist and 2 offensive rebounds that spelled the difference in defeating the Denver Nuggets 107-105.
"It was definitely a game of different emotions coming from a tough home loss against Lakers, I'm glad we bounced back." Jerry Sloan said.
Malone made 2 free throws with 38.8 seconds left in 4th to give Jazz a 5-point lead, 107-102. Abdul-Rauf, struggling all night, made a good pass to Antonio McDyess for an and 1 to cut the lead to 2 points. Chris Morris misfired a 3 point shot to give Nuggets the chance to send it on overtime or win it with a 3 point shot. There was 17.3 seconds left in the game when McDyess grabbed his 14th rebound, surprisingly Coach Bernie Bickerstaff did not call time out and let his players play. Abdul-Rauf tried driving to the basket but was well guarded by John Stockton, decided to kick it out to Jalen Rose. Rose fired a 3 with 1.7 seconds but was short.
When Coach Bickerstaff was asked why he did not call a time out, "I looked at Mahmoud and he signed he will take over, I gave my player a chance, I like to give his confidence back in the game. I don't regret it. We win and lose as a team" he said.
"This one's on me, I apologize to my team mates and the coaching staff, especially to Antonio, he had a special night." Abdul-Rauf said.
Rookie Antonio McDyess had a career game, finished with 33 points and grabbed 14 boards, almost outplayed Karl Malone.
"I look up to him, he inspired me to play this game, he is consistent every season." McDyess said.
When asked about posterizing John Stockton, "I really did not notice him (Stockton) to be honest, it happened so fast. I know we were down and have to score quickly" McDyess added.
Back up point guard Randy Woods provided quality minutes finished with 15 points shooting perfect from the field 6 out of 6, 3 out of 3 from beyond the arc. "It does not come often to have this kind of opportunity, Mahmoud is a great scorer, he told how pick my spots" Randy said.
Abul-Rauf quickly signs to coach not to call a timeoutBOX SCORE