Utah @ Boston preview

Last Meeting ( Feb 11, 2017 ) Boston 112, Utah 104

Kyrie Irving appears no worse for wear from a quadriceps injury that caused him to miss a game earlier in the week and he will try to lead the Boston Celtics to their sixth straight home win when they host the struggling Utah Jazz on Friday. Irving sat out Monday's 108-85 loss at Chicago, watching his team put forth its worst offensive effort of the season, but he hit the ground running with 33 points in Wednesday's 124-118 win over Denver.

"We had to be resilient practically the whole night, and kind of weather their storms," Irving told reporters after Boston followed up its season low in points at the Bulls with a season high. "They kept coming and kept coming. We had to outscore them at some point." Points have been tough to come by for the Jazz, who are averaging 98.8 during a four-game losing streak and also fell at Chicago on Wednesday, despite a big game from rookie Donovan Mitchell and the return of leading scorer Rodney Hood. Mitchell provided 32 points on 15-of-26 shooting after going 4-of-17 from the floor Saturday at Milwaukee, while Hood added 15 off the bench after missing the previous seven games with an ankle injury. "We can't do it in spurts," Hood told the media. "If we can't sustain it over 48 minutes, we're not going to win."

TV: 7:30 p.m. ET, AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain (Utah), NBCSN Boston

ABOUT THE JAZZ (13-15): Although the Bulls have suddenly won four straight, they offered one of the few games this month in which Utah would be the favored squad, as it finishes its six-game road trip with visits to Boston, Cleveland, Houston and Oklahoma City, and also plays San Antonio and Golden State before December ends. "This was a game we had to have," Hood said in Chicago. "It's frustrating when you play well enough to win, and then you don’t get it." Center Rudy Gobert had six points and has been held to single digits in four of five games since returning from a leg injury.

ABOUT THE CELTICS (24-6): Boston should have Al Horford back for this one after he was given some rest against Denver, but fellow forward Marcus Morris is expected to miss extended time with a knee issue. Center Aron Baynes received his eighth straight start Wednesday and responded with 17 points on 8-of-11 shooting in a season-high 28 minutes. Guard Jaylen Brown, who shed the protective goggles he wore the previous three games, scored 26 points and is shooting 44.8 percent from the arc at home.

BUZZER BEATERS

1. Celtics SF Gordon Hayward, who starred for the Jazz for seven seasons and likely had this date circled on his calendar before the season, is no longer in a walking boot from his ankle surgery in October.

2. Mitchell is averaging 27.2 points in December.

3. The Celtics have won eight straight meetings at home.

PREDICTION: Celtics 107, Jazz 98