Playing with renewed energy after seemingly quitting on beleaguered coach Paul Westphal late in the season and in the first two games of the series, the Sonics turned up their defensive intensity, and outhustled the Jazz to every offensive rebound and loose ball.

You would think it was the kind of game that would make Westphal beam ... and Jazz coach Jerry Sloan nauseous. Instead, Westphal's face was flushed and his answers fraught with anger and sarcasm over contentions from the media (colored from anonymous players) that he did not have control of the team.

"Our stuff worked a little better," Westphal barked. "It's the same stuff we've been doing, just did it better. This week was no fun. We're in the middle of a fight, and we have to deal with this other stuff. But I guess that's part of the NBA; we're happy we got the win."

When asked about 'this other stuff,' he responded with a terse, "Never mind!"

Sonics All-Star point guard Gary Payton had said he was taking the game back into his own hands, as if Westphal had decided on Shammond Williams to handle the ball most of the time as a starter in the first two games. As an answer, Williams went back to the bench, Brent Barry returned to the starting lineup, with Payton at point guard. Payton, although struggling with his shot, finished with 23 points, 10 assists and 7 rebounds to lead the Sonics.

He wasn't the difference. The entire team had energy for the first time in this series. Perhaps it was the turmoil that at one point had veteran Chuck Person raging that the entire problem with the team was the local media.

And that's what made Sloan chuckle.

"I think they had too much turmoil," Sloan said, tongue-in-cheek. "Our guys bought right into that, thinking they didn't have to play. It's the oldest trick in basketball."

Seriously, though, Sloan agreed their traps were quicker, and it completely stymied All-Star point guard John Stockton, who had just two free throws the entire game until he converted a layup just .1 second before the final buzzer to finish with 4 points. The Sonics changed up the way they approached the vaunted Jazz pick-and-roll, by jumping out on Stockton quicker with a double team.

"It wasn't anything new," Stockton said. "They were more aggressive ... maybe that was the difference."

The result: Karl Malone was his typically effective self, making 12 of 19 shots from the field and scoring 30 points. But the rest of the team was a paltry 18-of-55 from the field, with Stockton (1-for-8) and his backup Howard Eisley (0-for-7) the worst offenders. One other lineup switch Westphal made was going back to Ruben Patterson for significant minutes, and the aggressive small forward responded with 13 points and 5 rebounds in 22 minutes.

Paul Westphal shuffled his lineup effectively to extend the Sonics' season at least one more game.(AP)

His productivity allowed Westphal to show another look. He had Patterson, Baker and Grant up front, with Payton and the 6-foot-10 Lewis at shooting guard. It proved the Sonics were bigger and more athletic, making it nearly impossible for the flat Jazz to respond. They outrebounded the Jazz 46-38, an edge that included 14 offensive boards.

"We were fading so far (away from the basket), we would have played from their end if we could," Sloan said.

Still, the Jazz stayed in the game, trailing by six at halftime if only because the Sonics were sloppy, and Payton's shooting was awful (finishing 8-of-24). And three minutes into the fourth quarter, the Sonics still were hanging on to just a seven-point lead even though the Jazz seemingly had nothing.

And finally, the Sonics erupted, with Payton, Baker and Lewis leading the charge as they ran the Jazz into the ground. By the time, Barry sank a 3-pointer six minutes into the run, the Sonics had erupted with a 16-3 run and the Key Arena crowd was in a frenzy over the insurmountable 82-62 advantage.

"We made people make plays (with our defense)," Payton said.

More importantly, he said, Patterson and Lewis, the energetic young duo played a lot of minutes instead of the tentative rotations of the previous two games.

"Rashard and Ruben out there together is a great combination," Payton added. I mean, they're both young, they're both energized. Hopefully, we can see that combination a little bit more so we can take advantage of it."

And so it came to pass that the Sonics pulled out of the funk, Payton was chatty and Westphal was in a fury. Hmmm, sounds like springtime in Seattle, where playoff basketball always promises to provide something different.