Heat Burn Ice-Cold Jazz On Glass In Lopsided Contest
Jan 24, 2026, 10:45 PM | Updated: Jan 26, 2026, 9:06 am
SALT LAKE CITY – The Miami Heat dominated the Utah Jazz 145-116 in a dominant blowout at Delta Center.
Brice Sensabaugh led the Jazz with 23 points off the bench, and Jusuf Nurkic recorded his third straight triple-double.
Bam Adebayo paced all scorers with 26 points in 31 minutes.
Ice-cold Utah Jazz Can’t Rebound Against Heat
The Jazz collapsed in two major areas, allowing Miami to win Saturday’s game with ease.
Utah went just 7-for-25 from three, an unusual slump against a Heat defense that typically allows 14.1 made threes per game — seventh-worst in the NBA.
Several Jazz players went cold from deep, including Keyonte George, who missed all eight of his attempts, and Ace Bailey, who went 0-for-5.
The Jazz’s seven made threes were tied for their second-worst outing of the season, and included only one make from the starting lineup. Utah is now 2-16 when hitting 12 or fewer threes, and 13-15 when making 13 or more.
stepback Sensabuckets >>>#TakeNote presented by @Pura pic.twitter.com/7MnWFxI4Si
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) January 25, 2026
Miami also dominated the boards, outrebounding Utah 64-34 — a staggering 30-rebound gap.
“That was as big a physical loss as you can have,” Jazz coach Will Hardy said. “We just got obliterated on the glass.”
It marked only the seventh time in franchise history the Jazz have allowed 60 or more rebounds while failing to grab at least 35.
Despite its rarity, it wasn’t their first such showing this season; on Jan. 10, Charlotte won the rebounding battle 65-31, the largest disparity in team history.
Jusuf Nurkic Triple-Double Streak Continues
Jusuf Nurkic logged his third straight triple-double with 17 points, 12 assists, and 10 rebounds, setting the franchise record for the longest triple-double streak in Jazz history.
He also moved into a tie with Andrei Kirilenko and Karl Malone for the third-most triple-doubles by a Jazz player, trailing only Pete Maravich (seven) and Mark Eaton (six).
Jusuf Nurkic is now tied for the third-most triple-doubles in @utahjazz history with 3.
He recorded his first triple-double in Utah on Tuesday.
— Ben Anderson (@BensHoops) January 25, 2026
Despite the effort, Hardy was hesitant to celebrate the achievement.
“It’s a great statistical achievement — we lost by 30,” Hardy said bluntly.
While Hardy wasn’t anxious to highlight the outing, he didn’t prevent the Bosnian center from making history.
The coach left Nurkic in the game until he grabbed his 10th rebound to complete the triple-double with 1:48 left in the fourth quarter and the Jazz trailing by 29, before subbing him out after the next possession.
Hardy Deserves More Credit For Improved Jazz Offense
Before the season, the Heat overhauled their offense, nearly scrapping the popular pick-and-roll and shifting to an isolation-heavy approach that lets any player attack their defender.
The system closely mirrors what the Memphis Grizzlies used last season with mixed results before abandoning it this year to better utilize point guard Ja Morant.
The Heat have seen only slight gains with the new approach, improving from the NBA’s 21st-ranked offense to 20th and raising their offensive rating from 112.4 to 113.5.
Though the results are modest, it raises the question: why don’t more teams try reinventing their offensive systems?
“I truly think that every coach’s responsibility is to look at who’s on their team and try to do what’s best for that group,” Hardy said.
show ’em the range then big fella! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/L8S72TPs3k
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) January 25, 2026
While the Heat and Grizzlies have been praised for torching their previous offensive identities, Hardy has also shown creativity in adjusting his system to his roster.
The Jazz still run some sets from last season, but Hardy had to rework an offense that no longer features John Collins, Collin Sexton, Jordan Clarkson, or Walker Kessler—four of last year’s top six scorers.
He has revived Lauri Markkanen by giving the seven-footer more freedom in the half-court after using a more stationary approach at times last year.
The Jazz are also leaning more on Jusuf Nurkic in dribble-handoffs in areas once used for Markkanen, allowing the veteran center to pressure defenses with strong screens and sharp passing.
The offense has improved as a result.
The Jazz finished last season with a 110.2 offensive rating, 24th in the league. This season, that has risen to 114.3, ranking 17th.
“Ultimately, you’re just trying to help the group function best you can,” Hardy said.
Next Utah Jazz Broadcast
The Jazz will host the Los Angeles Clippers on Tuesday at 8 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on NBC/Peacock 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.
