By: Kimya Oliver
The Utah Jazz defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder 107-86 to open the new 2021-2022 season.
The Jazz made their mark on the hardwood last night with six players scoring in double figures.
Team Leaders
Forward Bojan Bogdanovic led the team with 22 points. Shooting guard Jordan Clarkson had 18 points off the bench. Both Rudy Gobert and Donavan Mitchell had 16 points. Joe Ingles also chipped in 12 points.
Gobert made his mark on the hardwood in tonight’s game. Not only did he manage to score 16 points, but he also grabbed 21 boards. 16 of those boards were defensive rebounds. Gobert shot six of nine (66.6 percent) from the field.
The Flow
The Jazz started the game out strong defensively by holding the Thunder to only 18 points in the first quarter and shooting 37 percent from the field and holding the lead 54-42 by halftime. When the second half started, Utah still had momentum on their side, opening with a 13-1 run to push the lead 66-43. By the end of the third quarter, the Jazz were up 88-63.
Mitchell struggled with scoring. He only had two points in the first half of the ball game and got the rest of his points in the second half of the ball game. 12 of his points came in the third quarter. Mitchell shot six 6-17 (35.2 percent) from the field and 3-10 (30 percent) from beyond the arc.
Both teams struggled shooting from the field and from the three point line. The Jazz shot 39- 91 (44 percent) from the field and 14-47 (29.8 percent) from the three point line. The Thunder shot 34-91 (37.4 percent) from the field and 7-35 (20 percent) from beyond the arc.
Other Notes
Guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander made his presence known on the hardwood, racking up 18 points. Forward Darius Bazley had 15 points and rookie Jeremiah Robinson-Earl had 10 points, coming off the bench.
Rudy Gay is still out with a foot injury and it’s still not certain when he will return.
The Jazz are looking great on the defensive end. Will they have the best record in the NBA again?
Up Next
The Utah Jazz will be facing the Sacramento Kings October 22, 2021 at 8 p.m. MST.
Featured image courtesy Getty Images