Malone Hits the Key Note for Jazz : His Jumper With Two Seconds Left Sinks Lakers, 99-97

The Lakers and the Utah Jazz, who by now have developed a formidable rivalry in the Western Conference, last spring’s seven-game playoff series being the benchmark, gave each other a new look for 1988-89 Friday night.

A close game.

They hadn’t played anything that resembled a to-the-end finish in five outings, but this climax made up for it: Karl Malone’s 18-foot jumper from the right baseline with two seconds left gave the Jazz a 99-97 victory before 17,505 fans.

Malone, who scored 16 of his 24 points in the second half, spent most of the fourth quarter on the low post. But with the game on the line and the Jazz given a rare opportunity to win at the Forum, John Stockton drove down the lane and found him alone on the baseline.

“The whole Forum was running at John Stockton because they knew he was going to try and make something happen,” Malone said of his teammate, who tied him for team scoring honors with 24 points and added 11 assists.

Stockton kicked the ball out in traffic and left the rest to Malone.

Three timeouts were called before the Lakers had their chance to reclaim the lead they held for most of the game, or to send the game into overtime. But Magic Johnson’s running jumper on the left side just in front of the three-point stripe went long.

“We aren’t looking at this with big emphasis,” Malone said of Utah proving it can win at the Forum. “We have eight more games left. I’ve forgotten this game already.”

The Lakers may not for a while--it cost them a chance for a fifth straight 60-win season.

“That’s eight or nine games we’ve lost like this, by one or two points at the buzzer,” Coach Pat Riley said. “Maybe we would have won those last year. Now, it (the rest of the regular season) is about making sure we have the best record in the Western Conference.”

The loss dropped the Lakers, who got 24 points and 10 assists from Johnson and 24 points from James Worthy, to 50-23. Utah is second-best in the West, at 46-28, and, if only for a night, gaining.

The first three games between the teams this season were all decided by double digits, with the Jazz winning both times at Salt Lake City and the Lakers once at the Forum. That includes a Feb. 20 game in Utah, when the Lakers suffered a 105-79 setback, their biggest losing margin in a regular-season game since April 1984 and the fewest points they’ve scored in a regular-season game since November 1974.

In the wake of that decisive victory, the Jazz, remembering last season’s Western Conference semifinal win by the Lakers, could have given this game playoff overtones. But Utah, which began the night winless in 12 straight regular-season games at the Forum, denied there was any such motivation.

“I certainly don’t look at this game as a chance to establish ourselves,” Utah Coach Jerry Sloan said beforehand. “Any win on the road, that would be more important than anything.”

The Lakers, looking for their fourth straight win at home, were on the verge of opening a decisive lead in the first half when Utah fought back.

They had a 13-3 run to turn a 28-26 deficit into a 39-31 Laker advantage with 6:05 left in the second quarter. Michael Cooper capped it with a three-point basket from the left corner.

The Jazz evened the game at 39-39, but the Lakers responded with another surge, this time outscoring Utah, 10-2, in the final 3:09 of the first half to lead at the intermission, 49-41.

Laker Notes

If elected, he will serve. Magic Johnson, in response to Friday’s decision by the International Basketball Federation to allow pro players into the Olympics, said, “It would be a great touch” to play in the Olympics after winning National Basketball Assn. championships and is all for the idea. “The NBA title is big,” he said before the game. “But, other than that, the fact is that it’s for a gold medal. And representing the country would be special.” Other reactions: Utah’s Karl Malone: “I would look forward to it. Did you see how they (the Soviet Union players) were high-fiving each other when they won.” James Worthy of the Lakers: “I really haven’t given it much thought, seeing as they just announced it today. (But) I just don’t see how the two can correlate themselves with the schedule. The NBA season is long already, and then with the Olympics? It would be tough.” Which is exactly what concerns Jazz Coach Jerry Sloan: “It would have to be something to be concerned about if someone on my team played. From a coaches’ situation, our position is volatile enough. You have to wonder how much it would take out of a player to go all summer and then come back (to the NBA) in the fall.” Said Utah’s John Stockton, one of the last players cut in the 1984 Olympic trials: “It’s three years down the line. Who knows.” . . . Johnson spent 1:24 of the third quarter in the locker room after having part of the nail on his right thumb treated. He suffered the injury while trying to knock the ball away from Utah’s Thurl Bailey under the basket. The Lakers were outscored, 7-0, while Johnson was out.