Jazz Game 6 blog: Bogdanovic's game-winning attempt rims out as Jazz fall to Mavs

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SALT LAKE CITY — It's win or go home for the Utah Jazz.

The Dallas Mavericks handily took care of Utah in Game 5, and now can finish the series on Thursday with a win in Game 6 (8 p.m. MDT, TNT) in Salt Lake City.

Donovan Mitchell is probable to play after suffering multiple thigh contusions over the course of the series, and the Mavericks will have their cleanest injury report since the series began.

Follow here for live updates, commentary and news throughout the day.

Thursday, 10:28 pm

Jazz fall to Mavs, and an offseason of change awaits

Armed with its small-ball lineup, the fight and energy was there for the Utah Jazz going into the fourth quarter. The only problem is the shots didn't fall.Every trip down the court on offense was an exercise in futility as driving attempt after driving attempt was met with physicality and a missed bucket — and even some arguing from Jazz players. At one point, Jordan Clarkson, after not getting a foul called after he was met with contact, jumped up and down as he pleaded to the ref for a whistle.None came. And then Dallas extended its lead.Despite the struggles to get a basket (or foul called) at the rim, the Jazz never gave up and eventually tied up the game 88-88 after an 8-0 run. But as has been a problem all season — and only exacerbated in the first-round series — a wide-open 3-point look went in for Dallas.Utah, again, managed to tie up the game 91-all late in the game, but Jalen Brunson beat the Jazz with a corner 3-pointer of his own. Eventually, Utah cut the lead to one on a Rudy Gobert bucket under the rim and had an opportunity to take the lead but Mike Conley was called for a travel on a drive to the basket.But Utah still had a chance with 4.3 seconds left in the game after Brunson made only 1 of 2 free-throw attempts with a 1-point lead. Bojan Bogdanovic got the pass, pump faked to see his defender pass and put up the shot. The ball rimmed out and Utah fell to Dallas 98-96.The Jazz season is over, and an offseason of change awaits.

Final from SLC 💔 pic.twitter.com/2iipC0aCJ9

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 29, 2022

Thursday, 10:15 pm

Donovan to Rudy? It happens

Don to Rudy 🗣#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/RN0kssvBqs

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 29, 2022

Thursday, 09:53 pm

Another double-digit lead gone? Inconceivable

A double-digit halftime lead squandered; it's not like that's happened before to the Utah Jazz.But sure enough, a 12-point halftime lead for Utah meant nothing to the Dallas Mavericks, who quickly erased the double-digit lead and got the deficit down to one as the quarter neared an end.After a first half where neither team could find success from behind the 3-point line, the baskets opened up in the third quarter — especially for Dallas. The Mavericks finished the first half with only three made 3-pointers on 18 attempts, but managed eight made 3-pointers on 12 attempts to closeout the quarter to take a 77-72 lead going into the final quarter.Mavericks' Luka Doncic, who had only 9 points in the first half, was a big reason for his team's success in the quarter. The superstar guard had 10 points in the quarter as Dallas outscored Utah 36-19. Doncic was part of a back-and-forth 3-point barrage against Bojan Bogdanovic midway through the quarter as the pair hit four 3-pointers in succession.But Dallas still held the upper hand as anybody not named Donovan Mitchell or Bogdanovic struggled to have an impact in the quarter.The Jazz have one more quarter to keep themselves from a first-round exit.

Thursday, 09:44 pm

Doncic and Bogdanovic exchange 3-point haymakers

Big shot, Big Babo 🔥 pic.twitter.com/7wh6ykETG0

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 29, 2022

Luka is out there foolin 😂😂😂#MFFL pic.twitter.com/fL6vJMnM4b

— MFFL (3-2) (@Mavs_FFL) April 29, 2022

Thursday, 09:14 pm

Jazz take double-digit lead into halftime

Ahead of Game 6, Quin Snyder said he was hoping his team would find more "moments" where the offense would click.The Jazz got one at the end of the second quarter. Utah rolled off an 18-5 run in the final 5:12 of the half to turn a 1-point deficit into a 53-41 lead at halftime.During the run, the Jazz got contributions from across the board. Bojan Bogdanovic had 6 points in the stretch, including a short jumper to end the half; Royce O'Neale scored on three driving layups; and Donovan Mitchell got the whole thing started with two nifty finishes.The Jazz didn't shoot well in the first half from deep — just 5 of 17 — but found success in the paint. Utah shot 60% from inside the arc, and Mitchell, who has struggled to finish this series, is 5 of 5 at the rim.Mitchell had 13 points on 6-for-9 shooting in the fist half, and Bogdanovic entered the break with 10 points.Dallas shot 3 of 18 from 3-point range, and Jalen Brunson led the Mavs with 13 points in the first half.

what 🕷 said#TakeNote | @spidadmitchell pic.twitter.com/QgZoxRKi0t

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 29, 2022

Thursday, 08:41 pm

Jazz off to early lead in Game 6

As someone who saw the Jazz shootaround this morning (and saw videos of the Mavericks' session), I can personally attest that both teams can hit a shot — and lots of them. But after the first quarter, you'd have to take my word for itDallas was 0 for 10 from the 3-point line and Utah was 3 of 12 from deep. The Jazz were trending to a result that was right on pace with Dallas until they hit two of their final three shots from deep.With those numbers, it wasn't surprising that it was a low-scoring start to Game 6.The Jazz led 21-15 after the first 12 minutes.Donovan Mitchell had 9 points on 4-of-7 shooting, and, aided by late triples, Jordan Clarkson and Mike Conley both had 5 points to help the Jazz out to an early lead.It wasn't pretty by any means — the Jazz committed five turnovers and shot 36% — but in an elimination game, all that matters is the score. And after what happened three nights ago in Dallas, a 6-point lead is definitely a positive.Utah, once again, couldn't contain Jalen Brunson, who had 9 points on 4-of-6 shooting in the first quarter.

Thursday, 08:31 pm

Donovan Mitchell wasn't lying when he said he was 'ready to go'

Donovan Mitchell had a quick 9 points in the first nine minutes of Game 6.

Spida things™️#TakeNote | @spidadmitchell pic.twitter.com/G1zwCzDDer

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) April 29, 2022

Thursday, 07:37 pm

The Jazz are going to ... embrace the noise

Rudy Gobert may have received a fine from the NBA for an expletive during a postgame broadcast earlier this week, but that didn't stop the Utah Jazz from adopting his phrase — albeit as a family-friendly version.Fans entering Vivint Arena got a T-shirt with the phrase on it.

The censored version … pic.twitter.com/btk1JjTLDO

— Josh Furlong (@JFurKSL) April 29, 2022

Thursday, 06:49 pm

What Quin Snyder had to say ahead of Game 6

Here's what Jazz coach Quin Snyder had to say during his pre-game availability less than two hours before Game 6.On Utah's poor transition offense this series:"I think you have to give credit to Dallas, the way that they've been conscious of finding shooters. I don't think we've been running with spacing the way that we can. That's something that we'll continue to emphasize. It's no secret, we shoot transition 3s at a high level. ... It's ironic, Dallas has done a really good job against us shooting transition 3s, particularly early in this series. So it's something that we want to do and not let them do."On what the team has done in its best offensive moments:"So I think the key part of your question is moments, because I think we need more moments. We've gotten into the lane and been able to read their help and their rotations or read when we have the rim. ... I think we can continue to work to get multiple actions. I think that's really when we're at our best. That takes an awareness when you do get in the lane; it requires 0.5-quick decisions."They're trying to run us off the line. Sometimes those contested 3s are good shots — sometimes there are better shots that are available — but we need to break the paint and re-space. A lot of times, the guy that makes the initial move, if he's able to kick out, then they're in rotations and it takes another pass and another drive and another kick. It's important that we continue to do more and we'll have more moments."On the challenges of an elimination game:"You can't lose. For us, I think we've we can play better than we have in the series just overall; it's an opportunity to do that. ... A game is comprised of multiple possessions, both defensively and offensively. I think that's where that's where our minds need to be and not on a potential result one way or the other."On the potential health benefits of bee stings:(This question was in reference to Rudy Gobert getting stung earlier this week, and the question drew a playful response from Snyder.)"I know Rudy is right eye dominant, so I'm just glad a bee stung him in his left eye. Other than that, I know the bee pollen is rumored to be a very potent nutraceutical — you know probably better than me."

Thursday, 12:08 pm

Rudy Gobert gets stung by his own bee leading up to Game 6

Rudy Gobert walked into the media room with minor swelling around his nose."There were seven guys and I'm the only one that came out of the room," Gobert joked as he sat down.By that point, it was already known what happened to Gobert's face, and the made-up fight was far less interesting.Gobert got some friendly fire from a bee that came from his very own hive. He apparently took the Beehive State moniker to heart.

Rudy Gobert joking about his eye swelling due to the bee sting:

"There were seven guys…" pic.twitter.com/iv3x98gokU

— Ryan Miller (@millerjryan) April 28, 2022The NBA All-Star center said he started the hive about a year ago. Which begged the question: Why bees?"There's a few things," Gobert said. "It's good for the environment, it's good for the landscape, the flowers, the fruits. And I love honey, so I always wanted to have my own. It's great."He then cheekily added, "sometimes there are some casualties," as he motioned to the sting mark on his face. He did say he could see just fine and that it won't affect him for Thursday's Game 6.In fact, he claimed it might actually be a good thing."It's actually good to get stung by a bee," he said. "It doesn't look like it is right now. … There are actually some health benefits. Some people get stung on purpose — I didn't."He said the sting was likely because they recently changed the queen bee. Beekeeper Rudy knows his stuff.And Gobert isn't joking about the health advantages. There are, indeed, some studies that have shown potential benefits of bee venom.The anti-inflammatory effects of bee venom have benefited some with rheumatoid arthritis, a painful inflammatory condition that affects your joints, and skin care companies have added bee venom to products like serums and moisturizers due to studies showing it can help with wrinkles and acne.As for Gobert, he said he's now been stung three times in the year of starting the hive."I always felt great the next few days after for some reason," he said.Which maybe — just maybe — could help him on the court. Will the Jazz season be saved by a bee sting? Yep, that's much more interesting than a fake fight.