29-4 First Half Run Sets Tone In Jazz Win Over Nets
Mar 16, 2019, 9:33 PM | Updated: 10:36 pm
Utah Jazz guard Donovan Mitchell (45) dribbles the ball against Brooklyn Nets guard Spencer Dinwiddie (8) at Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City on Saturday, March 16, 2019. (Silas Walker, Deseret News)
(Silas Walker, Deseret News)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Utah Jazz continued their winning streak with a controlling 114-98 win over the Brooklyn Nets, thanks to a dominating stretch during the first half when they went on a 29-4 run.
Donovan Mitchell dropped 24 points on 4-for-7 shooting from the field. Rudy Gobert poured in 23 points, 17 rebounds and 3 blocks. Derrick Favors scored 13 points, Ricky Rubio and Jae Crowder each scored 12 points and Georges Niang contributed 10 points off the bench.
Spencer Dinwiddie led the Nets with 22 points off the bench, while D’Angelo Russell scored 20 points and Theo Pinson added 12 points.
First Quarter Run Carries Momentum
The Jazz trailed for a few minutes in the first quarter but ended the period on a 15-0 run to lead 28-21. Gobert had 9 points and 7 rebounds.
They outscored the Nets 31-21 in the second quarter to lead 59-42 at the half.
Goodnight, sleep tight. pic.twitter.com/vzUkZdkwhB
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 17, 2019
Gobert finished the first 24 minutes with 12 points and 8 rebounds. Donovan Mitchell recorded 13 points, including 3-for-4 from downtown.
Utah Controls Second Half
The Jazz kept their foot down in the third quarter, while also posting back-to-back highlight plays with Mitchell and Gobert.
Brooklyn was able to get within 17 points, but that was about as close as they would get in the third quarter.
Utah had an 83-64 lead, heading into the fourth quarter.
The Jazz took control throughout the final period and coasted to the win.
Line one up in the W column!#TeamIsEverything | #BKNatUTA pic.twitter.com/2gI7o5OslM
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 17, 2019
Dunk Tracker
Rudy Gobert is on track to beat Dwight Howard’s record for the most dunks in a single season with 269 in the 2007-08 season.
Gobert entered the night with a second-highest mark in the league with 355 dunks and added 6 more slams to put his total at 249.
Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo entered Saturday night in first-place with 244 dunks this season. The Bucks did not have a game on Saturday. For the moment, Gobert passes Antetokounmpo for the most dunks this season.
Up Next
The Jazz improved to 40-29 on the season and have won three straight games. They will begin a four game road trip on Monday against the Washington Wizards at 5 p.m. on AT&T SportsNet.
Washington is 30-40 this season. This will be the first of two meetings between these two teams. The Jazz won both meetings last season.
