While coach Jerry Sloan was addressing the media, a giddy group of Utah Jazz players could be heard laughing in the adjacent locker room.

They had plenty of reasons to be thrilled.

Carlos Boozer had 24 points and 12 rebounds, Wesley Matthews added a career-high 16 points and the short-handed Jazz ran past the host Philadelphia 76ers, 112-90, last night.

"They should be happy," Sloan said. "I don't think a lot of people expected them to win."

Paul Millsap and Mehmet Okur scored 15 points each, Ronnie Brewer contributed 14 and Eric Maynor had 13 points and 11 assists for the Jazz, who played without point guard Deron Williams yet still had seven players in double figures. Andrei Kirilenko had 13.

"With Deron out, we knew we had to step it up," Boozer said. "You've really got to tip your hat to the rookies."

Williams -- who leads the Jazz in scoring and assists -- temporarily left the team to deal with a family medical issue, but could return in time for the game tonight at Cleveland.

After the game last night, Williams released a statement which read in part, "We [he and his wife] both appreciate the support of the fans, the Jazz organization and my teammates. I will return to the court as soon as possible."

The Jazz had nine available players. Also missing were guards Ronnie Price (sprained left big toe) and Kyle Korver (left knee surgery) as well as forwards Matt Harpring (ankle/knee) and C.J. Miles (left thumb surgery).

Utah started a pair of rookies in the backcourt in Matthews and Maynor. Maynor had played 31 minutes all season before this game.

"It felt real good, like I was back in college again," Maynor said.

Thaddeus Young scored 17, Jason Kapono added 12 and Andre Iguodala had 11 points and 10 assists for the Sixers, who fell to 4-5. Elton Brand had 11 points and Lou Williams 10.

"From the second quarter on, they pushed us, and we didn't push back hard enough," Brand said.

• Magic 88, Nets 72: Dwight Howard had 26 points and 12 rebounds and Matt Barnes added 13 points and 13 rebounds and host Orlando put away winless New Jersey. The Nets got a triple-double from point guard Rafer Alston (17 points, 10 assists, 10 rebounds), the first of his career, but the Nets fell to 0-9. They are the NBA's only winless team.

• Warriors 121, Knicks 107: Stephen Jackson scored 23 points, three other players had 22, and visiting Golden State sent New York to the worst 10-game start in franchise history. Monta Ellis, Kelenna Azubuike and Corey Maggette all had 22 for the Warriors, who easily improved to 1-1 on a five-game road trip.

• Mavericks 89, Timberwolves 77: Dirk Nowitzki had a quiet five points and five rebounds in the first half before jawing with Timberwolves rookie Jonny Flynn five minutes into the third quarter. He received a technical foul, then scored 13 points, grabbed five rebounds and blocked three shots in the next seven minutes to hand the Timberwolves their ninth consecutive loss.

Charles Krupa/Associated Press

Celtics forward Paul Pierce loses control of the ball as he is hit from behind by Hawks forward Maurice Evans in the first quarter in Boston.

Looking for more from the Post-Gazette? Join PG+, our members-only web site. You'll get exclusive sports content, opinion, financial information, discounts from retailers and restaurants, and more. Our introduction to PG+ gives you all the details.