Bojan Bogdanovic scored 27 points, Rudy Gobert added 20 points and 10 rebounds and the Utah Jazz beat the Oklahoma Thunder 137-101 on Wednesday night at Vivint Arena.
Jordan Clarkson had 18 points and a season-high 10 assists, and Hassan Whiteside added 15 points, 11 rebounds and five blocks to help the Jazz win their fifth straight home game.
Jaylen Hoard scored 23 points for Oklahoma City. Isaiah Roby and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl each added 18 points.
With nine inactive players due to a slew of injuries, the Thunder struggled to keep pace with Utah once the Jazz found their shot.
Utah surged ahead late in the first quarter on a layup from Bogdanovic that sparked a 16-2 run. The Jazz scored baskets on nine straight possessions.
Oklahoma City cut the deficit to two points in the second quarter, with Lindy Waters III making three straight 3-pointers to fuel a 13-2 run. Hoard cut to the rim for a layup to cap the run and trim Utah’s lead to 57-55.
Clarkson answered with back-to-back baskets to keep Oklahoma City from overtaking the Jazz. He also set up baskets from Gobert on consecutive possessions to help Utah take a 71-58 lead into halftime. The Jazz led by double digits virtually the entire second half.
After the Thunder cut the deficit to nine on a 3-pointer from Robinson-Earl, Utah used a 27-5 run to build up a 118-87 lead early in the fourth quarter.
TIP-INS
Thunder: Robinson-Earl set a career high in scoring after not playing in Oklahoma City’s 98-94 win over Portland a night earlier. ... Zavier Simpson had 11 assists in his second NBA game.
Jazz: Donovan Mitchell (rest), Mike Conley (right knee injury maintenance), and Royce O’Neale (right thumb soreness) were inactive. ... Utah scored a season-high 41 points in the first quarter. ... Jared Butler had eight assists in the second half en route to a career-high 10.
