McGrady Leads Rockets Over Jazz

Tracy McGrady snapped out of his fourth-quarter slump and scored seven of his 27 points in the final period, leading Houston to a 94-92 victory over Utah last night that gave the Rockets life in a series that could have been headed for a sweep. Rafer Alston added 20 points and five assists in his first game in nearly two weeks for Houston.

Carlos Boozer had 15 points and 13 rebounds, while Mehmet Okur scored 12 with 11 boards for the Jazz, whose poor free throw shooting caught up with them in the fourth quarter when McGrady started scoring. Game 4 is Saturday in Utah, where the Jazz were 37-4 this season. The Jazz went 20-for-33 from the foul line, getting 11 more chances than Houston (16-for-22).