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SALT LAKE CITY — The Jazz have been struggling defensively all year long while the Thunder are one of the top offensive teams in the league. So it would only make sense that their game would be a defensive struggle with Utah's offense not showing up.
The Jazz lost to the Thunder 90-80, both teams were well under their average offensive production. The Jazz slipped out of the playoffs for now in a game they actually could afford to lose, but have lost any leeway in the coming games. If the Jazz play defense like they did against Oklahoma City it shouldn't be a problem, unless they play the same brand of offense.
Truth be told this was actually a pretty good game for the Jazz. They hustled, worked and fought to the end. They were without Marvin Williams, who is a really good defender on Kevin Durant, Alec Burks, who might have been an answer to the lightning-fast Russell Westbrook, and Enes Kanter, who had surgery and could have spelled the starters a few minutes.
Take away five of the 17 turnovers and the game could have been completely different. In the end the Jazz's offense gave out in this loss, while the defense kept them close.
It's a little frustrating. We started to figure them out towards the end. It was just a little too late and we couldn't get over the hump, but I thought the fight we showed was pretty nice.
–Gordon Hayward
"We shot 39 percent and turned the ball over 17 times," said coach Tyrone Corbin. "I think the turnovers were big. It was a night where our defense held them to 39 percent shooting also from the field, but when you turn the ball over 17 times and scored 16 points off it. The pace of the game was a grind it out style. You can't afford to give up those opportunities."
Durant and Westbrook combined for 46 of the 90 Thunder points. Durant also has 12 rebounds and 9 assists. Those two are always going to be scary and get their points. They combined for a 15-16 performance from the line. Westbrook needed 21 shots to get 25.
Teams will often let the stars have theirs and make sure they stop the role players, and the Jazz did that pretty well. The remaining Thunder players went 18-50 on the night and that includes Serge Ibaka going 8-14. Take him away and they shot 28 percent.
Now if only the offense had been there for the Jazz.
"It's a little frustrating," said Gordon Hayward. "We started to figure them out towards the end. It was just a little too late and we couldn't get over the hump, but I thought the fight we showed was pretty nice."
The shooting group of Hayward, Randy Foye and Mo Williams combined to go 6-20 on 3-pointers. Inside Al Jefferson and Paul Millsap went 11-24 for 23 points. The bench, while only three players due to injury, went 4-14.
In their last eight games, where the Jazz have gone 7-1, they had been shooting 50 percent from the field and 40 percent from 3. Even in their loss against the Nuggets the Jazz shot 46 percent. They also only committed 12 turnovers and had 26 assists in those games. Against the Thunder it was 17 and 22.
A lot of credit belongs to the defense of the Thunder. They are a long and athletic team. The kind that gives the Jazz fits.
"We played well enough to win tonight," Jefferson said. "Coming in against a top team tonight who came off a loss and they wanted to come in and make a statement. They wanted it as bad as we did. Too many mistakes were made, we got caught up taking too many jumpers."
We gave them everything we had. Defensively we were on our game today. Offensively we just didn't have enough to put it over the top.
–Randy Foye
The Jazz knew they could have stolen a win, but things didn't fall the way they wanted them to. They had effort, movement and, barring a few great plays by the Thunder, really good defense. The offense wasn't enough to get the win.
"We gave them everything we had," Foye said. "Defensively we were on our game today. Offensively we just didn't have enough to put it over the top."
This might be another case of what might have been for the Jazz. There have been a few games where one side didn't match the other. Most of the time it was the defense giving way, but the offense didn't click in the right time against the Thunder.
Moral victories don't help teams get into the playoffs, but if the Jazz can harness this defense and effort and tighten up their offense then this Friday won't be their last home game of the season.
