Jazz Looking To End Skid Against Golden State
Dec 18, 2018, 2:59 PM
Damian Jones #15 of the Golden State Warriors defends agents Rudy Gobert #27 of the Utah Jazz in the first half of a NBA game at Vivint Smart Home Arena on October 19, 2018 in Salt Lake City, Utah. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images)
(Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images)
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – The Utah Jazz return home from a trip in Mexico and Houston to meet the defending champion Golden State Warriors on Wednesday.
The Jazz came up empty on the road trip, losing to Orlando 96-89 in Mexico City and were defeated by the Houston Rockets 102-97 on Monday.
They are 14-17 on the season and have lost four of their last five games. While the Warriors are 21-10 this season and have won two in a row and six of their last seven games.
Steph Curry Is Back
After sitting out 11 games to an ankle injury, Warriors star point guard Stephen Curry is back in the lineup and healthy.
The Warriors are 16-3 with Curry in the lineup and are 5-6 when he is out. Since returning to the Warriors on December 1, Curry has scored 30 points or more three times and 40 points or more once in the eight games back.
The grind pays off.
Congrats, @StephenCurry30 👏 pic.twitter.com/cZSEluaqtT
— Golden State Warriors (@warriors) December 18, 2018
He is averaging 28.8 points per game right now, which is second best in his career. Curry also averages 5.3 rebounds and 5.5 assists per game.
His teammate Kevin Durant had to carry the scoring load in Curry’s absence but it hasn’t declined much in his return as he is averaging 28.8 points, 7.5 rebounds and 6.2 assists per game.
Last Meeting
The last time that these two teams met was on October 19 in Salt Lake City, it was the Jazz home opener.
Utah scored 81 points in the first half and was up by 12 points at the half, 81-69. Golden State rallied with 55 second half points while holding the Jazz to 42 points.
Former Jazzman Jonas Jerebko tipped in a shot at the buzzer to give the Warriors a 124-123 win.
Jonas Jerebko #21 of the Golden State Warriors and teammate Stephen Curry #30 react to their 124-123 win over the Utah Jazz at the end of a NBA game at Vivint Smart Home Arena on October 19, 2018 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Jerebko had the winning basket. (Photo by Gene Sweeney Jr./Getty Images)
Joe Ingles scored a career-high 27 points including 7-of-11 from the three-point-line. Donovan Mitchell added 19 points and Ricky Rubio chipped in 13 points and 10 assists. As a team, Utah made 19 of their 46 three-point attempts.
Kevin Durant led the Warriors with 38 points, 9 rebounds and 6 assists. Stephen Curry added 31 points and 8 assists while Draymond Green scored 14 points, pulled down 9 rebounds and dished out 6 assists. Golden State made 10-of-19 from beyond the arc.
Wednesday will mark the second of three meetings between these two teams. They will meet one more time in Oakland on February 12.
The game will begin at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on AT&T SportsNet.
📓| “We just need to dig in and focus on what we need to do to win the next game.” —Quin Snyder
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) December 18, 2018
