SALT LAKE CITY -- Gordon Haywards pinpoint shooting got the Utah Jazz off to their best start of the season and Marvin Williams made the plays at the end for their most impressive victory of the season. Williams scored five points in the final two minutes, Hayward broke out of a shooting slump to score 29 points and the Jazz earned their first back-to-back wins of the season with a 109-103 victory over the Rockets on Monday night. "What a huge win for us," Williams said. "Houston has been playing really, really well. For them to come into our building and put up a big-time fight and then for us to come out on top is a great feeling." With Utah clinging to a 101-98 lead, Williams stole James Hardens pass and raced down for a dunk with 2 minutes left. "Thankfully I was able to take advantage of a miscommunication on their part. It was a huge break for us," Williams said. Williams, who has been playing with a mask since breaking his nose last month, then hit a 3-pointer from the top of the key with 59 seconds to go to boost the lead to 108-100. "Gordon made a very, very unselfish play," Williams said. "I thought he was going to shoot it. He was really going and had been making plays all night for us. Im glad I stayed there and stayed ready." Rookie Trey Burke posted career highs of 21 points and six assists for Utah, which shot 54 per cent and made 10 of 17 from beyond the arc. The Jazz were coming off a 112-104 win over the Suns on Saturday Harden had 15 of his season-best 37 points in the fourth quarter to keep the Rockets close, but they couldnt get enough defensive stops. "We just didnt defend. We go through mental lapses where we dont lock down on the defensive end. We gave up too many points to fight our way back," Harden said. For a change, it was the Jazz making crucial plays at the end. "Were learning from the other games and not making the same mistakes twice," Hayward said. "Dont get me wrong, we still have a lot of improvement as a basketball team and as individuals, but its good to see we didnt let this one slip away like we did early in the year." Dwight Howard had 15 points and Francisco Garcia and Omri Casspi had 13 apiece as Houston lost for only the second time in its last 10 games. The Rockets have averaged 111 points on 51 per cent shooting during the stretch. Harden weaved through a trio of Jazz players and scored a crafty layup to tie the game at 86-all with 8:07 to play. Alec Burks answered with a 3-pointer and the Jazz led the rest of the way. Burke started the season on the injured list with a broken finger but has found his rhythm in the past few games. His hot play has coincided with Utahs best stretch of the season as the Jazz have won three of four after dropping 14 of their first 15 games. "Its a matter of the players and coaches having confidence in me and just taking what the defence is giving me," Burke said. The Jazz put the ball in the rookies hands and let him make plays down the stretch. In the fourth quarter, Burke had seven points and six assists and marked a career-best in points for second straight game. Add in Haywards savvy all-court game and the Jazz finally look like a formidable team at times. "The greatest thing was (Hayward and Burke) made plays for their teammates," Utah coach Tyrone Corbin said. "They attacked and were able to get everybody involved and it threw (Houston) off a little bit." Hayward made 12 of 18 shots to regain his shooting confidence. His early hot streak sparked the Jazz to lead by as many as 14 points in the first half. Over the previous nine games, Hayward made just 36 of 123 attempts for 29 per cent. "I got going early by getting some easy buckets in transition and anytime you see the ball go through the hoop like that, it sets the tone," said Hayward, who had 17 points in the first quarter. The Jazz shot 59 per cent from 3-point range, while Houston hit 32 per cent (9 of 28) from beyond the arc. The two teams played here exactly one month ago when Chandler Parsons scored 24 points and the Rockets outscored the Jazz 64-37 in the second half to win 104-93. Parsons sat out this game with a sore back and the Rockets had only Harden and Aaron Brooks, who had 13 points, as playmakers in the fourth quarter. "We had plenty of guys to win this game today. It had nothing to do with who wasnt there," Houston coach Kevin McHale said. Since Burke recovered sufficiently to play starter minutes, the Jazz have reached 100 points in three games for the first time all season. Before this run, Utah only had one contest in which they topped the century mark. NOTES: Jeremy Lin missed his third game with a sprained and bruised right knee. ... Houston was outscored 36-23 in the first quarter. ... The Rockets had 54 points in the paint. . Alexis Sanchez scored in each half while Pedro Rodriguez also netted as the three-time defending champions earned its 10th straight league win to increase the pressure on Madrid, which can restore its four-point lead by beating Atletico Madrid on Wednesday. [url=http://www.patriotssuperbowl49jerseys.com/Super-Bowl-XLIX-Steve-Grogan-Wome... Grogan Super Bowl Jersey . Coda Gordon and Colby Cave could not score for Swift Current in the first two rounds of the shootout, while Giorgio Estephan, Riley Sheen and Reid Duke came up short for Lethbridge. . Jair Jurrjens pitched six strong innings to become the first 10-game winner in the NL and the Braves had eight extra-base hits in a 10-1 victory over the San Diego Padres on Saturday night. [url=http://www.patriotssuperbowl49jerseys.com/Super-Bowl-XLIX-Danny-Amendola-Wo... Amendola Super Bowl Jersey . Holcomb, the reigning Olympic gold medallist, guided his team of Curt Tomasevicz, Steven Langton and Chris Fogt to a two-run time of one minute 48.56 seconds at Canada Olympic Park. Germanys Maximilian Arndt and Russias Alexander Zubkov finished tied for second place in 1:48.EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. -- With the exception of a Super Bowl ring ceremony and a trip to White House, Eli Manning has put his second championship season behind him. It ended Monday when Manning and teammates showed up for voluntary off-season workouts. Its back to football. For the two-time Super Bowl MVP, that means looking for a third receiver to replace Mario Manningham, finding a backup running back to replace Brandon Jacobs and thinking about his right tackle, where the job is open with Kareem McKenzie on the free agent market. Its preparation 101, which is exactly the way Manning is approaching his upcoming appearance May 5 as the host for Saturday Night Live. In typical Manning fashion, he asked NBC for a game plan before agreeing to become the latest sports celebrity to do the show. In a wide-ranging locker room interview on Thursday, Manning said he served as a sounding board for his brother, Peyton, during his free agency, laid low the past two months to rest after a long 2011 season and his goal now is simply to get himself ready for a season in which the Giants will be hunted as the leagues defending champions. "The motivation is always trying to improve, always trying to get better, to become a better player," Manning said. "Sometimes you cant worry about winning a championship the next year. You know how difficult that is. You know a lot things have to happen, but you cant always control that. You can control making sure you are doing everything you can to be prepared, getting your workouts and being in shape doing everything you can to try to stay healthy and help your teammates be mentally ready for the season. "Right now, we are working hard and getting prepared." Manning will spent the next two weeks getting ready for 2012, and then he will start preparations for SNL, a show that has been hosted by a slew of great athletes, including his brother, Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, Olympian Michael Phelps, Patriots quarterback Tom Brady and NBA superstar LeBron James. "I am looking forward to it, it will be fun," said Manning, who has no acting experience. "It will be a new experience for me. Right now, I am more anxious than anything to get a feel of what I might be doing. It might be doing something a little bit out of my character or uncomfortable, but I am looking forward to just working hard that week, and having a lot of laughs and being prepared." Manning has been a fan of the show and watches it when he gets a chance. He knows a few members of the cast, but refused to say who was his favourite. "I dont want to be picking favourites riight now," Manning said.dddddddddddd "Its kind of like asking who is your favourite receiver. You can get in trouble answering those questions. Whoever can write the funniest script will be my favourite afterward." Eli said he would talk to Peyton about being the host for the show. "Before I made a decision to do this I asked for a complete schedule of whats the most I could possibly do," Manning said. "What is the most they have asked anyone to do? They sent that over and I looked at it and saw I would not miss a workout, or any meetings or team activities here. That is always what my first priority is, that I am here with the players and my teammates. "And then afterward, I can get into the city and do my preparation there." Manning even quipped he would be willing to watch videotapes to see what other athletes have done on the show. "I havent watched much film on them," Manning said. "Maybe when I get there, Ill have some cutups or some highlight reel I can look at." Manning talked to Peyton about the show, and he advised his brother when he was making his decision on free agency, eventually picking Denver. "I talked to him definitely," he said. "Were brothers. I talked to him about some of the places, or coaches or things I knew about certain offences and what not. We had several discussions with him. Its good for him to have someone to talk to and to bounce some ideas off to see if he is thinking correctly. "I am just happy he will be in uniform next year." The one topic Eli Manning was reluctant to discuss was Tim Tebow, who was acquired by the Jets. When asked if he was intrigued to see how things worked out, he sidestepped the question. "Obviously being in the same city you see what is going on and you hear things," he said. "But it obviously is not a big concern for me." NOTES: WR Victor Cruz wants a new contract but he has no intention of skipping the voluntary workouts to force a deal. GM Jerry Reese said a new contact for Cruz is one of the many things on his plate. ... CB Prince Amukamara, the teams first-round draft pick last season, had a second procedure done in the off-season on the left foot that he broke in training camp. Stem cells from his hip were injected into his foot to promote healing. ... OT Will Beatty said the detached retina that sidelined him after 10 games last season has healed. He expects to return to left tackle, which is where David Diehl finished the season. Diehl or Beatty will probably end up as the tackles, but its uncertain who will play where. cheap nfl jerseys wholesale jerseys ' ' '