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MEMPHIS -- If the Jazz miss the playoffs, their two losses to the Hornets this season may come back to haunt them the most.
The Jazz were unable to close against a Hornets team that got hot in the fourth quarter behind the stellar play of Hornets guard Eric Gordon, losing to the Hornets 96-85 on Friday in New Orleans.
Gordon scored 10 of his 25 points in the fourth quarter, including seven straight in a critical 13-0 run that put the Hornets up for good.
The Hornets are 4-2 when Gordon, who has missed most of the season due to one injury or another, is in the lineup. The Hornets have won three of their last four games.
"We just couldn't stop Eric (Gordon) tonight,'' Jazzman Gordon Hayward, who played high school basketball against Gordon in Indiana, said to the Associated Press. ''We made him take some difficult shots and he was able to knock them down. He's a tough player to guard.''
Jazz coach Tyrone Corbin warned his team that if they let the Hornets hang around, they’re capable of winning.
''We had opportunities to win the ballgame and get out of here,'' Corbin said to the Associated Press. ''We told them at halftime, 'You can't let this team hang around.' They get close at the end and they have guys that are capable of making shots, and that's what happened.''
The Jazz (31-29) look to put another dreadful trip to the Bayou behind them as they face the Grizzlies (34-24) in Memphis tonight.
While the Jazz have struggled against the Hornets this season, they’ve had considerable success against the Grizzlies. The Jazz are 2-0 against the Grizzlies, including a 98-88 win in Memphis the last time they met.
Tonight’s game has critical playoff implications for both teams. While the Jazz are fighting for their playoff lives, being 1½ games out of the final spot in the West, the Grizzlies are looking to move up in the seeding and capture a home-court advantage in the first round.
Memphis is 1½ games behind the Clippers for the fourth seed and three games behind the Lakers for the No. 3 seed.
Despite losing 107-97 in San Antonio on Thursday, the Grizzlies are confident they’re a team that can match up with any team in the league.
"Obviously, we haven't beaten San Antonio this year," Grizzlies forward Rudy Gay said to the Memphis Commercial- Appeal, "but I still feel like we can match up with them and anybody."
The Grizzlies have won seven of their last nine games, including recent wins over Oklahoma City, Dallas, Miami and Phoenix.
Grizzlies big man Zach Randolph said his team is ready for the playoffs.
"We're playing good basketball. We've gone through some good tests," said Randolph, who recently returned from an injury that has sidelined him for most of the season, to the Commercial-Appeal. "I'm not where I was last year at this time, but we're prepared pretty good right now for the playoffs. We're ready."
Grizzlies coach Lionel Hollins said his team needs to endure until the regular season ends.
"We've just got to keep battling and playing," Hollins said to the Commercial-Appeal.
The game takes place at 5 p.m. at FedEx Forum in Memphis and will be televised by Root Sports.
Jarrod Hiatt is a freelance writer who writes Jazz previews for KSL.com. You can follow him on Twitter at @jarrodhiatt.
