by Alma Bean
Feature Image: Photo by Jeff Chui of AP Photo.
The Utah Jazz (19-17) takes on the Golden State Warriors (17-18) in their third and final meeting of the season with the series currently split 1-1.
Cold in the Golden Coast
To start off the game, Utah looked dominant. Shooting perimeter shots at will, Utah went 7/14 (50%) for the quarter with a less-than-stellar 5/11 (45.5%) within the perimeter. Lauri Markkanen (29/16/1) was a major contributor to Utah’s success from the perimeter shooting 4/5 (80%) for the quarter. Utah’s defense managed to keep Golden State from capitalizing on three-point shot opportunities by keeping them at 3/12 (25%) and 10/24 (41.7%) from the field. With Golden State struggling to make three-point shots, Utah was able to finish the quarter with a 37-27 lead.
In the second quarter, Utah’s dominance began to disappear. Neither team shot well from the perimeter, but after shooting 50 percent in the previous quarter Utah went 2/11 (18.2%) in the second. Though Utah has received a resurgence of energy since the return of Collin Sexton (11/2/4), Utah has still found minutes for Nickeil Alexander-Walker (6/2/3). Alexander-Walker made it difficult for himself to receive minutes in this game after receiving three fouls within four minutes. Without life coming from the bench, Golden State was able to take advantage and even went on a 10-0 run to make the game tied just before halftime. Utah was able to stop this momentum finishing out the quarter on a 5-0 run giving them the lead 59-54 at the half.
Utah Jazz on Twitter: “more of a nickel than a dime 😉 #TakeNote https://t.co/JkHkZgsYgI” / Twitter
The Steve Kerr Theory
Utah limited their shot attempts in the third quarter but worked to their benefit. Utah shot 7/9 (77.8%) within the perimeter and 5/9 (55.6) from beyond. Jordan Clarkson (22/3/2) contributed to the great third quarter shooting 4/6 (66.7%) from the field along with two free throws to give him 11 points for the quarter. Ty Jerome (17/7/2) made his offensive presence known for Golden State going 4/5 (80%) from the field along with a free throw to give him nine points for the quarter. Though both teams had a great offensive quarter with Utah outscoring Golden State 35-34, Utah went into the final quarter leading 94-88.
Utah Jazz on Twitter: “🔋 @JVando with that big energy 🔋 #TakeNote https://t.co/lvyToW8fsJ” / Twitter
Utah’s fourth quarter was hard to watch. Shooting 3/13 (23.1%) within the perimeter and 1/12 (8.3%) from beyond, Utah had their lowest-scoring quarter of the season with 13 points. Between allowing Golden State to have 23 fastbreak points for the game and multiple possessions allowing multiple offensive rebounds, it was a surprise that Utah had a chance. Even with limiting Jordan Poole (26/3/1) to 2/7 (28.6%) from the field and 1/5 (20%) from the perimeter, Utah had to fight uphill in the fourth quarter. When Utah was down 109-106 with 45 seconds left in the game, Kelly Olynyk (9/6/2) had the opportunity to bring Utah within one point. Though Olynyk is an 85 percent free throw shooter on the season, he managed to miss both attempts which looked to sink Utah as a whole. Golden State was able to prevail and give Utah a two-game losing streak with 112-107 final.
Important for us to maintain perspective. … Team had a good practice yesterday, re-focused defensively … went 1-11 from 3 in 4Q, missed some FTs … really important that the result doesn’t reflect how they approached the game.
Utah Jazz coach Will Hardy speaking on the performance of the team against Golden State in his postgame interview. -Eric Walden via Twitter @tribjazz.
What’s Next?
Utah will wrap up their three-game road trip on Friday against the Sacramento Kings at 8:00 p.m. on AT&T SportsNet.
The Hive Sports 
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