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Jazz, Blazers battle on Wednesday
By: Staff Writer - StatFox
Published: 1/30/2019  at  9:36:00 AM
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The Utah Jazz play at the Portland Trail Blazers on Wednesday, bringing in a reputation as a strong defensive team.

The Jazz ranked third in the NBA in points allowed per game (105.1), fourth in defensive rating (104.8) and 11th in opponents' field-goal percentage (45.5) after Monday's games. But offense was the key to their 125-111 victory at Minnesota on Sunday.

Guard Donovan Mitchell finished with 29 points -- 22 on only 10 second-half shots -- as Utah hit on 23 of 30 attempts from the field in the game's final 19 minutes. Mitchell was 2 for 12 shooting in the first half and 8 for 10 in the second half.

"Donovan started to figure out some angles in pick-and-roll," Utah coach Quin Snyder said. "When we attack the rim, a lot of things start to open up."

Mitchell said: "Just trying to make the right reads, making the shots easier for myself, not taking tough ones. That's what got me into a funk at the beginning of the year."

The Jazz were 15 for 39 from 3-point range, led by forward Jae Crowder at 5 for 10. Center Rudy Gobert was 7 for 8 from the field.

"We did a great job of getting to the paint in the second half," Gobert said. "We were sharing the ball and knocking down shots. We couldn't get stops. They were making tough shots, but we were able to outscore them."

Utah (29-22) is the second-hottest team in the NBA behind the Golden State Warriors, having won nine of 10. The Jazz have won two of three games from the Blazers this season, although Portland prevailed in the last encounter, 109-104 at Utah on Jan. 21.

"They're playing really well," Portland guard CJ McCollum said. "Donovan Mitchell has found his rhythm in January. They've played us tough all season. We're going to have our hands full."

With Damian Lillard out with a sore knee, McCollum moved into Lillard's point guard role and scored 28 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and matched his career high with 10 assists in leading Portland past the Atlanta Hawks 120-111 Saturday night.

"CJ was terrific," Portland coach Terry Stotts said.

"That might have been his best all-around game this year. He set the tone for us. He just played the game, but his leadership with Damian out was really important. He didn't go out and try and get 50. He made the right plays, scored when he needed to score. Probably the most impressive thing was his rebounds. He showed a lot with Damian being out and him being cast in a different kind of role."

Lillard will return to action for the Utah game.

"Being the point guard of the team, everything starts with (Lillard)," McCollum said. "Without him out there, (I was) just having to talk a little bit more, initiate the offense and try to keep everybody involved."

Blazers guard Nik Stauskas, who sat out the second half against Atlanta because of a knee injury, is out for Wednesday's game.


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