The young Utah Jazz, meanwhile, embraced one another and quietly celebrated after a 103-99 win over the Houston Rockets on Saturday night that gave the franchise its first playoff series victory since the days of John Stockton and Karl Malone.
Carlos Boozer had 35 points, 14 rebounds and five assists for the Jazz, who became only the seventh team since 2001 to come back from a 2-0 deficit and win a series. Utah is also just the 19th visiting team to win a Game 7 in playoff history.
McGrady had 29 points and 13 assists but fell to 0-6 in the playoffs as the Rockets blew a 2-0 lead for the second time in three seasons.
Deron Williams had 20 points and 14 assists, and Mehmet Okur scored 16 points and grabbed 11 rebounds to lead Utah. Boozer grabbed two key offensive rebounds in the final 90 seconds, then hit two free throws with 19.9 seconds left to seal the victory.
Yao Ming had 29 points and six re-bounds, and Shane Battier had 16 points and went 4-of-7 from 3-point range for the Rockets, who haven’t won a playoff series since 1997.
The Jazz will open the second round Monday night at home against Golden State.
The Rockets trailed by 16 in the first half as the Jazz threatened to turn the deciding game into a rout.
Yao and McGrady both came out attacking the basket in the second half, scoring 13 of Houston’s first 15 points.
The Jazz led 75-67 after three quarters, but Yao and McGrady each scored to start a 7-0 run in the opening minutes of the fourth.
Rafer Alston banked in a 3-pointer with 8:38 left to force an 80-80 tie. On the Rockets’ next trip down, Yao got fouled on an offensive rebound and hit two free throws to give Houston its first lead since the opening minute.
Andrei Kirilenko sank a 3-pointer with 5:05 remaining to tie the game at 88-all. Two minutes later, Okur made a 3 to give Utah the lead for good.
