by Alma Bean
Feature Image: Photo by Spenser Heaps of Deseret News.
The Utah Jazz (19-21) starts their three-game road trip against the Houston Rockets (10-28) as they try to end their five-game losing streak.
What to Look For
Utah is coming into this game with a hefty five-game losing streak. With that being the case, Utah won their last meeting against Houston 109-101 in Utah, splitting the season series 1-1. In this final meeting of the season, Houston will have Jae’Sean Tate who has only played three games this season. On the other hand, Utah will be without Collin Sexton to rehab his hamstring he injured earlier in the season. Utah will need to lean on their hungry bench like Nickeil Alexander-Walker, Malik Beasley and Walker Kessler. In this final meeting, Utah will look to take the season series 2-1 but if that doesn’t happen, Utah may need to look at mixing things up ion the court. Whether that means switching up rotations, personnel or letting Danny Ainge do what he does best and find assets through trades.
Keys for the Game
Don’t downplay your opponent! Utah has a tendency to underplay teams that are ranked below them in overall standings. Utah is currently 6-6 against teams under .500 based on current NBA standings. Houston is currently ranked 29 of 30 in points per game (109.3) while ranked in the bottom half of the league in points allowed (115.8). Houston is ranked last in the league in field goal percentage (44.4%) while being in the middle of the pack in field goal attempts per game (88).
Injury Report
Houston- N/A
Utah- Leandro Bolmaro: Out (G League), Johnny Juzang: Out (G League), Micah Potter: Out (G League), Collin Sexton: Out (hamstring)
Where to Watch?
Tip-off between Houston and Utah will be at 6:00 p.m. MT on AT&T SportsNet.