Maybe they were distracted by the idea that this could be the final time they all play together. Maybe, going up against a Western Conference-worst team missing its top player, they simply played down to the competition.
Whatever the case, the Jazz were almost as bad as the Suns for much of Wednesday night. Almost.
After messing about for much of the night, letting short-handed Phoenix get within four points late in the third quarter, Utah finally got its act together in the final period, outscoring the Suns 37-17 to pull away for a 116-88 victory.
“They played well the first half, three quarters. It was a little unpredictable. They were short-handed, at times playing with four guards, which we haven’t seen for awhile. They played hard, they played well,” said forward Joe Ingles, who finished with 15 points and a career-high 11 assists. “… And at the end of the third, beginning of the fourth, we were able to kind of just lock in and make it a bit tougher on them — which, obviously, we should’ve tried to do from the start of the game.”
Seven Jazz players scored in double figures, as the team improved to 31-24 on the season.
The young Suns, meanwhile, who were playing without their one consistent offensive option, Devin Booker, were undone by committing 22 turnovers and hitting just 3 of 17 shots from 3-point range.
Of course, the Jazz themselves had turnover issues. After committing 10 in the opening half, they reduced their miscues to a more manageable six after the break, which they acknowledged was paramount.
“[Coach Quin Snyder] wasn’t very happy with that. And we all knew. We all knew — it didn’t feel great turning the ball over like that,” said Rudy Gobert, who totaled 16 points, 12 rebounds and three blocks. “But we came back in the second half and were a little more sharp.”
Well, for some of it anyway. And perhaps only in certain areas.
With Phoenix constantly attacking the hoop, the Jazz were on their heels even late into the third quarter. A transition alley-oop to Richaun Holmes cut Utah’s advantage to a mere four points, and had the home fans nervous.
The Jazz finally responded.
An 18-7 run to start the final period helped balloon the lead to 19. And a 19-10 run to close it out yielded a margin of victory that perhaps looked greater than was deserved.
Snyder was simply pleased to see his players get it figured out before it was too late.
“I thought our transition defense in the second half was better, as was just our one-on-one defense,” he said. “Offensively, we just settled down. We made some careless plays where we weren’t able to convert on defensive possessions. In the second half, we made the extra pass. There was that one stretch, we were getting some good looks because we we’re passing the ball.”
