Perhaps it’s not surprising that, on the second night of a back-to-back, against an opponent missing most of its top players, the Utah Jazz played as though they knew they could play around and still be all right.
To be fair, that was pretty much the case.
Saturday night’s 124-116 victory over the visiting Houston Rockets won’t do much for those who often wonder if the Jazz lack a killer instinct …
Then again, it did very much have the feel of a cat that had caught a mouse and was more interested in batting it around for awhile than simply eating it.
Were they playing with fire? Ever in any real danger as a result?
Well … probably not. Still, after leading by as much as 22-7 in the first quarter, it wasn’t optimal that they finished the period tied at 32. And it was less encouraging still that the Rockets would subsequently lead by as much as 42-35.
Then again, considering Utah was back up by as much as 10 before halftime and was never truly challenged thereafter, it’s perhaps hyperbolic to suggest the Jazz were ever genuinely threatened by the likes of KJ Martin, Khyri Thomas and DaQuan Jeffries.
The Jazz simply had too much firepower.
One night after Bojan Bogdanovic notched a career-high scoring night, Georges Niang did the same, tying his best-ever scoring night with a 24-point effort (on 9-for-12 shooting).
Meanwhile, Jordan Clarkson contributed 21, Bogdanovic added 20, Joe Ingles 14 and Rudy Gobert 13.
And after going just 6 for 17 from 3-point range in the opening half, Utah went 9 for 18 after the break.
Then again, there’s something to be said for being up 22 points with 3 and a half minutes to go, and not being able to take out the starters because they surrendered a game-closing 14-0 run.
Naturally, there is a bigger picture — notably, the Jazz did what they needed to do, picked up the victory, and earned their 50th victory of the season, keeping them atop the NBA standings.
This story will be updated.
from The Salt Lake Tribune https://ift.tt/3hq31t1
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