Jazz Defense Stifles Mavericks To Steal Game One
Apr 16, 2022, 1:46 PM | Updated: 1:50 pm
Utah Jazz center Rudy Gobert (Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
(Photo by Tom Pennington/Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz wrestled away home-court advantage with a 99-93 win over the Dallas Mavericks in game one.
Donovan Mitchell struggled in the first half but finished with 32 while Bojan Bogdanovic added 26 for the Jazz. Rudy Gobert scored just five points and failed to make a basket but grabbed 17 rebounds and blocked three shots.
The Mavericks who were without superstar Luka Doncic were led by Jalen Brunson who had 24 points in the loss.
First Quarter
The Mavericks opened with Dorian Finney-Smith and Reggie Bullock on Mitchell and Mike Conley, and Mitchell struggled against the bigger forwards.
Mitchell shot 0-4 from the floor and went scoreless in the first quarter.
Bogey is playoff ready.#TakeNote #NBAPlayoffs https://t.co/MlcbxpJYbH
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) April 16, 2022
Bojan Bogdanovic drew smaller Mavericks defenders however and punished Dallas with eight points on 4-5 field goal attempts.
Jalen Brunson led the Mavericks with eight points on 4-9 shooting.
After one, the Jazz trailed the Mavericks 43-40.
Second Quarter
The Jazz again struggled to score through the first six minutes of the second quarter as the Mavericks threatened to build a double-digit lead off of Jazz misses and easy transition opportunities.
However, Gobert dominated the paint defensively and Bogdanovic eventually found his stroke as the Jazz closed the half on 13-2 run.
Bogey caught 🔥 at the end of the first half.#TakeNote #NBAPlayoffs https://t.co/xjpKJ4O8v7
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) April 16, 2022
Bogdanovic had 20 points in the first half to carry the Jazz offense while Jalen Brunson led the Mavericks with 12 points on 5-15 shooting.
At the half, the Jazz led Dallas 45-42
Third Quarter
Donovan Mitchell opened the second half on a tear scoring 19 points in the third quarter on a blistering 7-13 shooting.
Mitchell got the rim and attacked the Mavericks big men finishing with layups and getting to the free-throw line rather than settling for tough jump shots.
🕷️💪😤#TakeNote #NBAPlayoffs https://t.co/7iFW8NRKJw
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) April 16, 2022
The Jazz defense limited the Mavericks to just 22 points in the quarter.
After three, the Jazz led Dallas 73-65.
Fourth Quarter
The Jazz opened the fourth quarter with their familiar struggles scoring just two points in the first two and a half minutes of the period.
However, Bogdanovic once again found his offense helping the Jazz build an 11 point lead with 5:58 left in the quarter.
Keep calm, Conley on. pic.twitter.com/Be2nll1GJ9
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 16, 2022
The Mavericks answered with an 11-2 run to trim the Jazz lead to just two with 3:33 left to play by getting to the free-throw line.
But, big shots from Mike Conley and Royce O’Neale down the stretch never allowed Dallas to retake the lead as the Jazz stole game one on the road.
The Jazz take a 1-0 series lead, beating Dallas 99-93.
