After their overtime win against the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night, the Jazz would need a herculean effort to extend their season-high home winning streak. The Jazz had won seven in a row at Vivint Smart Home Arena coming into Thursday night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs. The Spurs came into the night only four games behind the historically good Golden State Warriors. San Antonio’s incredible season has been lost in the Warriors’ hype. Something tells me that they aren’t too upset about that.
Gregg Popovich’s team is quietly leading the league in point differential at 12.5 per game. The Spurs also allow the fewest points per game at 92.7. It would be a tough night for the Jazz at home.
Utah had a pretty good first quarter. They managed to protect the ball well, only turning it over three times. They held the Spurs to 18 points on 40% shooting. Despite struggling from three-point range, the Jazz managed to shoot 42.9% overall in the first. Shelvin Mack led the Jazz in scoring after one with six points. The Jazz looked comfortable in the first quarter and finished with a 23-18 lead.
The second quarter was a different story for the Jazz. The calm control the Jazz showed in the first quarter disappeared as they went on a massive scoring drought. Fortunately for the Jazz the Spurs also struggled to score through much of the second quarter. San Antonio picked it up with a late scoring push. The Spurs finished the half on top 39-35. Kawhi Leonard was the picture of efficiency, scoring 15 points on 6-9 shooting.
The Spurs slowly built a lead as the third quarter progressed. Derrick Favors did his best to keep the Jazz in it, but San Antonio slowly wore down Utah’s will. At the end of three the Jazz were down 65-57. While an eight-point lead doesn’t seem insurmountable, against the Spurs it might as well be 15 or 20.
San Antonio continued to pour it on in the fourth. The Jazz had a couple of chances to make things interesting, but the Spurs were just too good. It took them a little while to get their stride, but once they found it they never looked back. Kawhi Leonard eventually started playing like his all-star self. He knocked down some big threes to plunge the dagger. Patty Mills also hit some threes that took the air out of the arena. Leonard finished with 29 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and 3 steals. Derrick Favors led the Jazz with 25 points, 6 rebounds, and 3 assists. The final score was 96-78 for the Spurs.
The Jazz will have a chance to bounce back against Brooklyn on Saturday night. The Nets are one of the league’s most spectacular dumpster fires, and the Jazz should have no problem taking care of business. The games aren’t played on paper, though, so anything could happen. It’s definitely tough to lose at home, but you can’t fault the Jazz too much for losing to San Antonio. Utah will need to regroup and chalk this one up as just one loss. A hangover would be pretty catastrophic. However, a win against Brooklyn would put the Jazz right back where they need to be.
Quin Snyder:
Gordon Hayward:
