by Alma Bean
Feature Image: Photo by Nate Billings of AP Photo
The Utah Jazz (31-32) takes on the Oklahoma City Thunder (28-34) in their first game of a six-game road trip for Utah.
Can’t Bear to See a Long Road Trip
Utah looked like they were struggling to shoot to start this game, but the numbers say otherwise. Utah shot an impressive 8/8 (100%) within the perimeter and an acceptable 4/9 (44.4%) from the perimeter. Oklahoma City just managed to knock down every other perimeter shot shooting 7/14 (50%) for the quarter after starting 5/6 (83.3%) in the first four minutes. Isaiah Joe (17/2/3) was a major contributor to Oklahoma City’s success from the perimeter shooting 3/5 (60%) in the quarter. The surprise of the quarter came from Simone Fontecchio (16/3/1) who was the offensive factor that Oklahoma City didn’t account for. Even with a team-high eight points for Fontecchio, Utah trailed 34-29 at the end of the quarter.
Utah’s second quarter was one that fans want to forget. Ochai Agbaji (8/3/2), who has been shooting 39.8 percent on the season from the perimeter, struggled to make those buckets in this game. Agbaji was a perfect 2/2 (100%) when shooting from the top of the key but went 0/5 (0%) from the corner in the first half. Even with those shooting struggles, it was Utah’s turnovers that stuck out like a sore thumb. After committing eight turnovers in the first quarter, Utah managed to commit 17 total turnovers by halftime which lead to 21 points for Oklahoma City. Oklahoma City’s Rookie of the Year candidate Jalen Williams (20/6/4) helped create the lead shooting 4/6 (66.7%) accounting for nine of the team’s 33 points for the quarter. With those atrocious numbers for Utah, they allowed Oklahoma City to run with the lead going into the half, 67-52.
The herd is the Word
After the half, Oklahoma City continued to run with their momentum through Josh Giddey (18/6/13). Even with Giddey shooting 4/6 (66.7%) within the perimeter for the quarter, it was his ball movement that kept players heads on a swivel. Through three quarters, Giddey was able to dish out 11 assists with only one turnover. Kris Dunn (11/6/6) did everything he could to keep Utah in this game including three steals, one leading to an easy basket on the other end. Though Utah outscored Oklahoma City in the quarter for the first time this game 32-30, they still trailed 97-84 going into the fourth.
The fourth quarter belonged to Aaron Wiggins (27 points and 4 rebounds). He scored a season-high of 27 points while scoring a career-high 17 points in the quarter on 8/10 (80%) shooting. With five minutes left in the game, Utah started to waive their white flag as they were down 119-94 giving Frank Jackson (2 rebounds and 1 assist) his first NBA minutes this season after signing a 10-day contract with Utah. With just over three minutes left in the game, Oklahoma City showed mercy and emptied their bench giving former Utah guard Jared Butler (1 rebound) his first NBA minutes this season after signing a two-way contract earlier in the day. Utah continued to try and apply pressure late, but Oklahoma City came away with the win 130-103
What’s Next
Utah will stay in town and face Oklahoma City once again for a rare matchup on Sunday.