Utah Jazz Win Third Straight Game With 115-101 Victory Over The Golden State Warriors

Feb 19, 2013; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz center Al Jefferson (25) shoots over Golden State Warriors small forward Draymond Green (23) during the second half at EnergySolutions Arena. The Jazz won 115-101. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-USA TODAY Sports

The Utah Jazz improved to 31-24 with their 115-101 victory over the Golden State Warriors Tuesday night at EnergySolutions Arena. The Warriors dropped to 30-23.  It was the first game after the All-Star break for both teams. Utah has won 3 straight games, and the Warriors have lost 6 straight games. The two teams are in a virtual tie for the #6 seed in the Western Conference playoffs.

In the first quarter Utah led by as much as 19-9, but Golden St would close to 26-19 at the end of the quarter. Golden State closed to with 30-24 with 10 minutes to go in the second. The Jazz then went on a 12-6 run to expand the lead to 42-30 with 7:28 left in the second. The Warriors went on an 8-0 run to make it 42-38. Utah would go on an 8-2 run to make is 50-40 with 4:35 left. The Warriors closed to 56-51 with 1:39 left. The teams traded buckets for the rest of the half. The Jazz would hold on for the 58-53 lead going into the locker room.

Golden State would close the gap to 60-59 early in the third, but would get no closer for the rest of the game. The Jazz would maintain a between one and six point lead for the first 6 minutes of the third.  Utah would expand the lead to as much as 11 points, but would take an 87-79 lead going into the fourth.

Golden State would close to 93-87 with just under 10 minutes to go in the game, but would get no closer. The Jazz went on a 6-0 run to make it 99-87 with 7:30 left. The Warriors would pull to within 9 points, but never really threatened to make a comeback. Utah would expand the lead to 17 a couple of times, and end up with the 14 point win.

It was the fifth time in the last six games that the Warriors  gave up at least 115 points. During their 6 game losing streak, Golden State has been outscored by an average score of 118-100.

Golden State shot 47% from the field and made 5 of 17 3 pointers. The Warriors made 18 of 24 free throws. Golden State had 42 rebounds, 17 assists, 5 steals, 3 blocks and 13 turnovers. The Warriors had 11 fast break points, and 38 points in the paint.

Point guard Stephen Curry led all scorers with 29 points, 5 rebounds, 4 assists, and a steal. Curry had 4 of the Warriors’ 5 made 3 pointers. Jarrett Jack had 19 points off the bench along with 9 assists, and 2 rebounds. No other Warrior bench player scored more than 5 points. Forward David Lee added 18 points, 9 rebounds, an assist, a steal, and a block. Guard Klay Thompson had 15 points and 7 rebounds.

Utah shot 50% from the field and made 10 of 21 3 pointers. The Jazz made 27 of 33 free throws. Utah had 35 rebounds, 23 assists, 8 steals, 8 blocks, and 11 turnovers. Utah had 9 fast break points and 38 points in the paint.

Center Al Jefferson had 24 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks, and an assist. Guard Gordon Hayward returned to the line-up after missing the last 10 games with a shoulder injury. He delighted the EnergySolutions Arena crowd with 17 points, 4 assists, 3 rebounds, and 2 blocks off the bench. Guard Randy Foye had 15 points, 2 rebounds, an assist, and a steal. Forward Paul Millsap had 14 points and 9 rebounds. Forward Derrick Favors added 14 points, 4 rebounds, and 2 assists off the bench. Guard Alec Burks added 13 points, 5 rebounds, 2 assists, a steal and a block also off the bench. The Jazz bench scored 47 points thanks to the trio of Hayward, Favors, and Burks. Forward Marvin Williams added 11 points.

The Jazz have won 3 straight games, but now get another 3 days off as they don’t play until Saturday when they travel to the Clippers. All in all, Utah came away with a tough win tonight, albeit against a reeling Golden State team that has seemingly forgotten how to play defense.