SEATTLE -- The Seattle SuperSonics have finally found a leader in Sam Perkins, who also shoots a pretty mean 3-pointer.
Perkins, who came to Seattle February in a trade with the Los Angeles Lakers, scored 11 of his team-high 20 points in the third quarter Saturday to lead the SuperSonics to a 100-92 win over the Utah Jazz and into the second round of the NBA playoffs.
Seattle, down 39-30 at halftime, outscored the Jazz 70-53 in the second half of the deciding game of the best-of-five Western Conference playoff series. The 30 points tied a playoff low for a half and their 70 points tied a playoff high for a half.
Seattle will open its Western Conference semifinals against the Houston Rockets Monday at home.
Perkins made 7 of 15 field goals and also had a game-high 13 rebounds.
'We were hesitating and standing around in the first half, so I decided to come out in the third and make a difference,' said Perkins, who scored three of his four 3-point baskets in the third quarter.
'They (the Jazz) left me wide open and my teammates started looking for me,' Perkins said. 'I figured if I knocked some down we could turn the game around.'
The SuperSonics shot 65 percent (26 of 40) in the second half after making only 31 percent of their shots in the first half. Gary Payton, who scored 13 of his 17 points in the second half, said when the SuperSonics got Perkins for Benoit Benjamin and Doug Christie, they received more than just a scorer.
'Sam told us at halftime just to clam down and we'd be OK,' Payton said. 'He said we can win if we stay together and don't crack. Sam's been there and he knows what he's talking about. If we keep listening to him we'll be all right. He's a guy with a lot of confidence.'
Karl Malone led the Jazz with 26 points and 12 rebounds, while John Stockton totaled 19 points and 11 assists.
'We played about as good as we can in the first half,' Malone said. 'But Seattle's the kind of team that can run up a lot of points when their shots are falling like they did in the second half.'
As they did in winning the fourth game by 13 points in Utah, the Sonics quickened the pace in the third quarter by rushing the ball up court on nearly each possession. They also couldn't miss, making 14 of 17 field goal attempts. The fast pace got the Jazz out of their ball- control tempo on offense and they made only 5 of 16 shots in the third.
'We were in a good position with a nice lead and the Sonics came at us from all directions and gave us a pounding,' Stockton said. 'We just cculdn't come all the way back.'
After scoring only 30 points in the first half, Seattle broke loose for 39 points in the third quarter to take a 69-57 lead into the fourth. The SuperSonics used three bombs by Perkins to outscore the Jazz 18-6 in the first 4:55 of the third quarter for a 48-45 lead.
The SuperSonics erased a 55-52 deficit with a 14-5 run. Shawn Kemp scored 6 points and Payton 5 in the tear that gave Seattle a 12-point lead.
The Jazz, who beat the Seattle in four games in last season's first- round playoff series, trailed by 16 with 3:04 remaining and never got closer than within 7 in the fourth.