by Nico Fiscella
Today we travel 26 years into the past, as the 41-16 Utah Jazz defeated the 30-25 Portland Trail Blazers. The Delta Center was packed to the brim for a show, as Karl Malone’s 30 point performance pushed the Jazz to a 98-81 victory.
Malone was the only Jazz to record over 12 points on the night, even with Hornacek making two fewer shots than the star power forward. Outside of Karl Malone, John Stockton had 10 points and 11 assists along with two steals. Blue Edwards, Adam Keefe, and Jeff Hornacek combined for 33 points total.
Malone only attempted 13 shots from the field. However, he knocked down 16 of his 21 free throws. He also had nine rebounds and an unfortunate five turnovers.
For Portland, James Robinson had 23 points on an efficient shooting night. Although going 9-19 from the field, Robinson was 2-7 from behind the arc. Robinson attempted more threes that evening than anyone who stepped foot on the court. Other notable performances include Terry Porter, Otis Thorpe, and Buck Williams all finishing the game with over 10 points. Thorpe finished the night with 13 points and an outstanding 14 rebounds.
The 1994-1995 season was another great season for all-stars Karl Malone and John Stockton. Malone finished 4th in points per game that season, scoring 26.7 points a night. On the facilitating side, Stockton led the league in assists with 12 per night while also finishing 4th in steals per night with 2.4.
The Jazz finished 60-22 with the second seed in the West that season. They had the fourth-best offensive rating while also being the 8th best defensive team. With a +8.6 net rating on the season, they finished as a top ten team in most major statistics. Unfortunately, they lost in the Western Conference finals to the NBA champion Houston Rockets led by Hakeem Olajuwon.
Featured image via Trent Photo