Utah bounced back from back-to-back losses to Minnesota in a massive way in Wednesday’s 154-105 win over Sacramento. It was the most points scored in franchise history and the largest win in franchise history.
High notes
- Following Wednesday’s shootaround in Sacramento, Georges Niang addressed the media via Zoom and said right off the bat the Jazz needed to executive at a higher level than they did in the losses against Minnesota. He said that with both Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell out, it would open the door for others to step up.
“Injuries are a part of the game. I think guys are ready to step up with roles they’re given with other guys out and continue to play Jazz basketball and winning basketball. Like I said earlier, injuries are a part of the game. We can’t look at who’s not around. If you’re available you have to get out there and give us what you’ve got and contribute to winning.”
Niang was one of those players as he got the starting nod and scored 19 points on 5 of 7 shooting from 3-point range. He made four straight 3-pointers during a stretch of Utah’s 46-point second quarter. Niang scored 16 points in the first half, but only added three more in the second half as he narrowly missed eclipsing his season-high 21 points.
- One of the question marks heading into Wednesday’s game revolved around who would pick up the scoring slack with both Mitchell (ankle) and Conley (hamstring) out of the lineup. Early on, Bojan Bogdanovic filled that role as he came out with an aggressive offensive mindset against the Kings. He wasn’t content to just shoot the 3 either. Bogdanovic finished with 12 points in the first quarter and a team-high 19 at the half, impressive considering he only made 1 of 3 from behind the arc. He contributed on the defensive end as well. Late in the first quarter he denied Sacramento a shot at the rim with a block, and on the next possession he intercepted a cross-court pass and then went coast-to-coast for the layup and the 26-18 lead.
“I shot pretty awful last game so I was trying to get in a different way in this game,” said Bogdanovic, who finished with a team-high 24 points.
- In Monday’s loss at Minnesota, the Jazz missed a whopping 41 3-pointers as they finished the game 16 of 57. The notion that the NBA is a make-or-miss league was pretty obvious in that loss, and the Jazz still almost won. The shots were falling on Wednesday, but just as important for coach Quin Snyder was seeing the quick decisions from his players to shoot when open, which he addressed in his postgame comments.
“It’s easy when you’re not making shots, there’s the thought that you should stop and do something else, and I think there’s truth to that to the extent you can get to the foul line, you can get out in transition, maybe get something. The priority really for me is quick decisions. If that means we’re open, it’s a quick decision to shoot the ball. Sometimes a game like that the other night, that’s how we have to play as a team,” Snyder said.
- Utah made as many 3-pointers as Sacramento attempted on Wednesday, shooting a staggering 58.5 percent. That was always going to be the writing on the wall for the Kings, but so too was getting outrebounded 47-24. Sacramento only had three offensive rebounds, as Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert almost outrebounded the Kings alone, combining for 21 boards.
- Since coming over from Toronto in late March, Matt Thomas has had a difficult time getting minutes on the floor, and when he has, his shots haven’t been dropping. For a player who’s known as a shooter, that’s a problem. On Wednesday, he again didn’t see the floor until the fourth quarter, but this time his shots were falling and it could be a sign that he’s finally feeling more comfortable in the Jazz offense. Thomas only played nine minutes, but he made all seven of his shots against the Kings, including going 3 for 3 from 3-point range. His last 3 was particularly notable as it set a new Utah Jazz scoring record as the 152nd point. Jarrell Brantley wrapped up the scoring with 52 seconds on a layup for point No. 154, which broke the franchise record for points. The New Orleans Jazz scored 153 points in a game back in 1978.
“As a shoot and a scorer it always feels good when the ball is going in the basket and tonight was one of those nights the basket looked pretty big for me,” said Thomas. “Quite frankly I haven’t had a cold stretch like that since really like college. It was something I wasn’t used to … hopefully tonight I finally got out of that slump.”
Low notes
- It’s hard to find any fault with what the Jazz did on a night when they set a new franchise record in points scored and margin of victory, but how about those Kings, yikes. Sacramento obviously isn’t having a great year as it sits in 12th place in the Western Conference, but there just wasn’t any fight after the first quarter. Sure Sacramento was missing three key contributors in De’Aaron Fox, Harrison Barnes and Marvin Bagley III (who average 55 points) but where was the fight from those getting increased playing time? The Jazz played without its starting backcourt but you couldn’t tell with how others stepped into new roles.
- As bad as it was for Sacramento in allowing 154 points on Wednesday, it wasn’t the most points allowed in franchise history. Back in 1989, the Kings lost to Golden State 155-143 in regulation. Former BYU Cougar Danny Ainge led the Kings in scoring that night with 45 points, and Mitch Richmond outshined him at the other end for the Warriors with 47 points.
from Deseret News https://ift.tt/3vyPi6Z
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