Key to victory was on the bench

SALT LAKE CITY – Carlos Boozer reverted somewhat to his earlier play this series. Matt Harpring was there to prop him up.

Mehmet Okur went amiss in the first half. Paul Milsap provided support.

And Kyle Korver was there in the second half with some long-distance shooting.

The Lakers bench may be more well regarded and recognized, but on Sunday they were shuffled to the side by the Jazz’s subs.

Just ask their coaches.

Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan:

“The thing that really kind of seemed to give us a little bit of life was our second group gave us a lift.”

Lakers Coach Phil Jackson:

“I really had to jump our second unit a little bit again because they let us down in the fourth quarter.”

Utah’s bench was integral in bringing the series back to Los Angeles tied 2-2, scoring a postseason-high 39 points. Meanwhile, the Lakers subs accounted for only 16 of their 115 points, 11 of them via Sasha Vujacic.

In the fourth quarter, the Jazz bench outscored their starters 15-14 and Korver converted all four of his free throws in overtime.

Korver (14 points) and Harpring (12 points) each notched new playoff highs this postseason, while seven of Milsap’s nine points came in the second half.

And each brings something different to the Jazz.

Korver can light it up from deep in a hurry. Harpring’s specialty is using back cuts to score while being an overly aggressive, if overly-physical, defender. And Milsap is an undersized but big-barreled big man.

Afterward, Harpring wasn’t ready to declare that the Jazz’s bench had outplayed the Lakers. Or it would even carry a psychological advantage heading into Wednesday’s Game 5. Instead, he just said the two teams are becoming more familiar with one another.

“Every game is different,” he said. “Sometimes you get some shots, sometimes you don’t. Sometimes the ball goes your way, sometimes it doesn’t. It’s game by game and the biggest thing when you come off the bench is to provide a spark and help your team get a lead or get a bigger lead.”

Sunday, Utah’s bench did both.

 jonathan.abrams@latimes.com