By: Kimya Oliver
The Utah Jazz fell short to the San Antonio Spurs as they lost 128-126 in a close game.
The Crossover: Utah Jazz by the Numbers
The Jazz opened the first quarter on a 12-6 run. They relied on getting the ball inside the post to begin this ball game due to not hitting a shot beyond the arc halfway through the first quarter. Mike Conley found Rudy Gobert for the alley-oop slam dunk. The Spurs found offensive momentum to go on an 11-4 run to take the lead.
The Jazz couldn’t find the bottom of the net from beyond the arc, making three of seven baskets from long range. The first quarter ended with the Jazz leading 37-36.
To get the second quarter going, Clarkson made a jumper. Not only couldn’t the Jazz hit from beyond the arc, but the Jazz struggled to stop the Spurs from hitting from deep. The Spurs made 7-13 three-pointers with 9:30 left in the second quarter.
Clarkson and Donovan Micthell hit back-to-back threes for the Jazz to stretch the lead to nine points. The Jazz continued to push the ball inside.
Mitchell brought the ball up the court and found Gobert wide open underneath the basket for the slam dunk. The first half ended with the Jazz leading 73-59.
Royce O’Neale made a floating jump shot to begin the third quarter. The Spurs were not letting up, opening the third quarter on an 11-7 run to cut the deficit to nine points. The third quarter was sloppy for the Jazz who were allowing easy layups and allowing and-1 situations. The third quarter ended with the Spurs leading 100-96.
Traveling: Home cooking goes stale for Jazz
The Jazz needed a quick turnaround to get this game back on track. Gobert gave Clarkson a high pick and roll for the driving layup to get the final quarter going.
The Jazz were down by three with less than five minutes in the game. Gobert gave Conley a high screen to allow space for him to sink the long three-pointer.
The Jazz took a 126-125 lead with 30 seconds left, but Spurs guard Lonnie Walker made the tough layup over Gobert with 15 seconds left on the clock. Mitchell led the Jazz with 27 points and Clarkson had 21 points. Mitchell was double teamed and couldn’t get a good look at a winning shot. Gobert had a double-double with 16 points and 14 rebounds.
Bounce Pass: Up Next
The Jazz will try to redeem themselves facing the Washington Wizards on December 18, 2021 at 7 p.m. MST.
Featured image courtesy Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News