Tip-off: Friday, 9:00 p.m. ET
Line: N/A, Total: N/A

The Blazers look to stay hot on Friday with a win over the Jazz in Utah.

Portland beat the Lakers 102-86 as 14-point home favorites before the All-Star break. It was the team’s second straight win-and-cover and it has now won four of its past five games SU. The Jazz, meanwhile, lost 87-82 as 5-point underdogs in Dallas against a Rondo-less Mavs team. The team had won-and-covered in its previous two contests, but has lost four of its past six SU. Portland last faced Utah on Feb. 3, when the Blazers won 103-102 as 8.5-point home favorites. They have dominated the Jazz in this head-to-head series recently, winning five straight games SU and covering in three of those contests. The Blazers have won-and-covered in their last two trips to Utah, but they are just 4-6 SU and 6-4 ATS in their past 10 games at EnergySolutions Arena. The Blazers haven’t been kind to bettors when playing as a road favorite, going 8-3 SU but just 5-6 ATS. They’re also just 2-2 SU and ATS when playing on three or more day’s rest. Utah, meanwhile, is 23-19-1 ATS when playing as an underdog this season, but just 7-8 ATS as a home underdog. They’ve responded better to rest than the Blazers though, going 2-1 ATS when playing on three or more day’s rest this season. C Chris Kaman (Ankle), SG Arron Afflalo (Acquired) and SF Alonzo Gee (Acquired) are questionable for the Blazers, and C Joel Freeland (Shoulder) is out indefinitely. SF Joe Ingles (Back) is questionable for Utah, while SG Alec Burks (Shoulder) is out for the season and SGs Patrick Christopher (Knee) and Rodney Hood (Foot) are out indefinitely.

The Blazers were playing well heading into the All-Star break and now face a very beatable Jazz team. PG Damian Lillard (21.5 PPG, 6.3 APG, 4.6 RPG, 1.5 SPG) torched Utah in the last meeting between these teams, finishing with 25 points, six assists, four rebounds and two steals in 37 minutes of action. Utah is weak at the point guard position, so Portland will need Lillard to perform at a high level once again on Friday. PF LaMarcus Aldridge (23.6 PPG, 10.3 RPG, 1.1 BPG) had 22 points and 11 rebounds against the Jazz last meeting. Aldridge has looked more comfortable shooting with his injured thumb lately and he should be able to have another good game offensively against Utah. He will, however, need to play better on the defensive end, as the Jazz have a lot of talent in their frontcourt. For that same reason, C Robin Lopez (9.9 PPG, 7.3 RPG, 1.6 BPG) will also have to show up in this one. He has played very well recently, averaging 11.4 PPG, 7.6 RPG and 2.0 BPG in his past five games. He had 11 points, six boards and two blocks against the Jazz last meeting and must continue to protect the rim for this Trail Blazers team. SG Wesley Matthews (16.4 PPG, 3.6 RPG, 1.2 SPG) caught fire the last he faced the Jazz. He played 35 minutes in that game and finished with 21 points and three steals. Matthews is Portland’s best perimeter defender and also is extremely reliable from behind the arc (40% 3PT). He is capable of making the Jazz guards very uncomfortable and his play will be a huge factor in determining who wins this one.

The Jazz did not play well heading into the break, but they will look to earn a home victory over a very good Blazers team on Friday. SF Gordon Hayward (19.7 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.3 APG, 1.4 SPG) should be extremely excited to go up against Portland, as he lit the Blazers up on Feb. 3. Hayward played 36 minutes in that game and finished with 27 points (10-for-16 FG, 3-for-4 3PT), five assists and five rebounds. He’ll need to use his shiftiness to keep the Blazers off balance and continue to get himself good looks. PF Derrick Favors (15.9 PPG, 8.1 RPG, 1.7 BPG) is going to be the guy in charge of slowing down LaMarcus Aldridge. Favors had 20 points in 34 minutes the last time these teams played, but he was wildly inefficient shooting the ball (8-for-18 FG), 4-for-7 FT) and will need to do a solid job defensively. C Enes Kanter (13.8 PPG, 7.8 RPG) gave the Blazers some problems last time around. Kanter knows how to use his body in the paint and he moved Lopez around at will, finishing with 16 points and seven rebounds in just 23 minutes of action. The Jazz will need him to continue scoring inside, but he also must play better defense against a Portland team that puts up points in a hurry. PG Trey Burke (12.6 PPG, 4.7 APG) had 18 points and six assists off the bench the last time these teams played. Burke has been providing some solid offense off of the bench for this team, but he is still a volume scorer and must be more efficient going forward. SG Dante Exum (4.7 PPG, 2.3 APG) also will need to break out of his recent slump in order for this team to win games. He hasn’t hit double-digits in scoring since Jan. 24 and has played 20+ minutes in every game since then.