Doncic Outbattles George In Lakers Win Over Jazz
Dec 18, 2025, 10:41 PM | Updated: Dec 19, 2025, 12:09 am
SALT LAKE CITY – The Utah Jazz snapped their two‑game winning streak by falling to the Los Angeles Lakers 143–135 on Thursday night.
Keyonte George delivered his third straight 30‑point performance, finishing with 34 points and eight assists. Luka Doncic powered the Lakers with a massive triple‑double: 45 points, 14 assists, and 11 rebounds to go with five steals.
The Jazz played without Lauri Markkanen, out with a groin injury, while the Lakers missed Austin Reaves (calf) and DeAndre Ayton (elbow).
Game Blog: Jazz Fall To Lakers Despite Late Rally
Doncic Pushes Lakers Past Jazz In Fourth Quarter
The Jazz controlled the game for most of the night, taking a 5–4 lead two minutes into the first quarter and holding it until Maxi Kleber’s free throw pushed the Lakers ahead 109–108 with 10:07 remaining in the fourth.
Los Angeles extended its lead to 12 with 4:23 to play, but the Jazz kept fighting.
Ace Bailey and George combined for six straight points, and Isaiah Collier’s layup trimmed the deficit to four with 1:41 left. Ultimately, the Jazz couldn’t finish the comeback.
cookies and stocking stuffers, courtesy of Ace 😏
’tis the season 🎅 pic.twitter.com/b2tgFzbLsf
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 19, 2025
Collier turned in one of his best outings of the season, scoring a season‑high 18 points on 6–12 shooting while adding 13 assists in 28 minutes.
“He’s making a lot of really good decisions for us,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “Zay works really hard, and I think he’s continuing to find his way of how his skill set fits with our team. If he keeps putting pressure on the paint and playing off two feet, he’s going to help us every night.”
Bailey bounced back from two tough games, scoring 19 points on 7–13 shooting in Markkanen’s absence.
Despite strong efforts from George, Bailey, and Collier, the Lakers outscored Utah 41–29 in the fourth quarter behind a combined 20 points from Doncic and LeBron James.
Missed Free Throws Hurt Jazz
Along with their late‑game struggles, the Jazz left too many points at the free‑throw line. Their 31 made free throws tied for their third‑highest total this season, but they missed 16 attempts.
Utah’s 47 free‑throw attempts marked its second‑highest total of the year and the most the Lakers have allowed since October 28, 2014.
George led the Jazz at the stripe, hitting 11 of 12, but the rest of the roster faltered. Jusuf Nurkic went 4–11, and Bailey shot 2–6, combining for 11 of Utah’s 16 misses.
Crazy stat: Keyonte George already has eight games with double-digit free-throw attempts in just 26 appearances this season.
That’s as many as he had over the first 142 games of his career.
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) December 19, 2025
“It’s a weird night when you score 135 points, but you missed 16 free throws and probably nine layups,” Hardy said.
The Jazz shot efficiently at the rim, going 7–9 in the restricted area, but finished just 14–19 on their other paint attempts.
Next Utah Jazz Broadcast
The Jazz will host the Orlando Magic on Saturday at 7:30 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on KJZZ, streamed on Jazz+, and heard on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone.
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Ben Anderson is the Utah Jazz insider for KSL Sports and the co-host of Jake and Ben from 10-12p with Jake Scott on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. Find Ben on Twitter at @BensHoops, on Instagram @BensHoops, or on BlueSky.
