Utah Jazz continue to amaze; Squeak past Portland Trail Blazers 93-89 - NBA Recap
Last season gave birth to a new rivalry between the Northwestern Division teams Portland Trail Blazers and Utah Jazz, as the former finished that season overpowering Jazz thrice.
On Monday night, both teams met for the first time in the 2011-12 season, however this time, history did not repeat itself as Jazz ended as the winners, after an excellent 48 minutes battle inside the Energy Solutions arena, Utah.
Portland started well and despite a 9-4 spurt by Jazz in the last few minutes of the second frame, they dominated the first half, ending it at 45-39.
LaMarcus Aldridge and Gerald Wallace fired in the earlier phase of the third frame to help Trail Blazers regain the double digit lead, 63-52, however what followed next was a game changing 13-2 spurt by Jazz which levelled it at 65 all.
The Jazz did not let the momentum slip and ended the frame, trailing behind only by 1 point 69-70.
Nicolas Batum drilled three outstanding trey in the opening minutes of the deciding frame to again put Trail Blazers in a commanding position at 79-74, however in the ensuing passage, Portland froze, allowing Jazz to pull off a magnificent 13 point unanswered run. That, all of a sudden, changed the complexion of the game, putting Jazz ahead by 8 points at 87-79.
The Trail Blazers did fight back and slashed the deficit to only two points 87-89 deep into the fourth, but Jazz used a flurry of free throws down the stretch to seal the victory.
Paul Millsap paced the Jazz with 19 points and 15 boards while the reserve CJ Miles added 15 points. Devin Harris amassed 13 points whereas Gordon Hayward, who struggled immensely with his shooting in the first half, improved in the second and ended with 12 points.
"I was trying to forget the first half," Hayward said. "It's something I don't think any player wants to do ... missing layups, missing wide-open shots. ... You need to keep shooting."
LaMarcus Aldridge led the Blazers with a game high 25 points on 11-for-20 from the floor. Disappointed with the outcome after his team dominated most part of the game, he added
"We definitely had control and we let it slip away,""No excuses. They kept playing hard and they ended up coming back and stealing one."
Nicolas Batum pounded 15 points on 4 for 5 from downtown while Jamal Crawford netted 14 points on 6-for-12 from the floor.
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