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The Lakers stomped their way through Games 1 and 2 at Staples, building big leads on the Jazz and only briefly flirting with giving them away before putting both on ice down the stretch. Short of the ballyhooed rebounding differential in Game 1, the Lakers have dominated just about every aspect of the series to this point. Tonight, though, the circus opens up on Salt Lake City, where the fans sit about six inches from the court, are extremely loud, and help support a squad that lost all of four times at home during the regular season. Utah- the team and the state- understands that this game is the season. Lose tonight, and the Jazz are effectively done. They may be done anyway, but that’s beside the point.

Here are five things to watch in tonight’s game…

• Carlos Boozer. He’s been, to channel our inner Charles Barkley, “trruble, just trruble.” In Game 2, he was a non-factor to the extreme, spending big minutes on the bench with foul trouble, and having no impact on the game in those he managed to play. If the Jazz are to have a chance tonight, Boozer needs to be the big, bruising load he’s capable of being, helping to neutralize LA’s advantage in the post and punish Pau Gasol.
• Laker composure with a 2-0 lead. The Lakers don’t have to win tonight. They don’t have to win Sunday. It would be great for them to get the split, but by winning the first two games in LA the Lakers have set the stage for a series in which they only need to win at home. Utah, on the other hand, knows they have to win tonight, and for all practical purposes, again on Sunday. Forget the underdog thing, all of the pressure is on the Jazz. The Lakers can afford to play loose and with as much freedom as they can muster in a hostile building, and enter the game with confidence, given that they’ve won six straight playoff games and beat the crap out of the Jazz the last time they visited town.
• Laker composure with Utah’s physical play. The opening pair of games at Staples have seen the Jazz attracting whistles like a “Hills” cast member attracts paparazzi. But on their court, Utah’s roughhouse play might receive a little more leeway. Maybe even a lot more. Thus, the Lakers need to keep their heads, whether you’re talking hot tempered reactions, focusing their collective attention on the refs rather than their opponents, or letting uncalled infractions (perceived or otherwise) take them out of their game. It’s been a problem for the Lakers in the past. They can’t let it become one tonight.
• Deron Williams: Game 2 was a tale of two halves for the top flight point guard. He may have kicked some serious tush after the intermission, but his first half struggles prevented his team from ever finding a steady rhythm. It doesn’t matter how soundly a car is built. Even if you’ve got a $200,000 ride, if the engine doesn’t perform, you’re likely to encounter problems trying to move in fifth gear. If Derek Fisher can continue making life rough on his former protege, a trickle down effect isn’t out of the question.
• Vladimir Radmanovic: It’s not that he was the only Laker starter who didn’t flirt with or hit 20+ points. It’s not that he wasn’t even in the neighborhood of double digits. It’s that his lack of production was coupled with a total lack of activity. One gorgeous touch pass to Pau Gasol in the first quarter aside, you’d think the guy didn’t even dress out. When Vlad’s shot isn’t falling (which it hasn’t during much of the postseason), the onus is on him to make sure he’s registering on the radar in some other way.

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