Golden State Warriors exact vengeance; Pull away in the second half to down Utah Jazz – NBA Recap
The last time when the Golden State Warriors and Utah Jazz came face to face, the Salt Lake City franchise carved out a clutch 88-87 win on a Gordon Hayward jumper. Eyeing a pay back, the Warriors stormed into their home court
and after a tight first half, they used a second half muscle to settle the score.
Led by 33 points from Monta Ellis and 29 points with a season-high 12 assists from Stephen Curry, the Warriors outclassed Utah Jazz 119 -101.
Warriors have not had a successful run so far and coming into the game, they had lost 12 and won only 7. But, they did get the redemption after levelling things with Jazz in this game.
The start of the game was slow and the defense was working effectively for both sides. However the Warriors took the first quarter by 3 points lead, 25-22.
The following quarter played out on the same tune. The Jazz did outscore the Warriors 24-23 in that frame but the Warriors still held on to a 48-46 at the break.
After the half time, things finally geared up and with 2:28 seconds to go, both teams were at loggerheads on 75. However the things changed quickly as Golden State skittled a 13-2 run to break the game.
Ellis provided the impetus with a driving finger layup at the start of the final quarter, and then Curry erupted with 13 points as the Warriors sprinted to a 112-93 lead.
The Jazz strived to overcome the deficit but their efforts went in vain, as the Warriors defense proved to be impenetrable.
David Lee added 23 points for Warriors, who also had 13 from Dorell Wright. Curry and Ellis stayed on the court for around 40minutes each and along with Lee they came up with 85 points.
Mark Jackson was more than contended with the duo’s performance;
"At their best, I'd put them up against anybody in the game, we know what they're capable of doing. The challenge to them is not to tease us."
For the Jazz, Gordon Hayward came up with 21 points while Al Jefferson and Josh Howard recorded 19 points each. Paul Millsap, the only player to record a double-double in his team, scored 15 points and 11 rebounds for Utah, but
clearly it was not enough to trouble the Warriors.
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