Jazz-Clippers live blog: 3 takeaways from Utah's 117-111 Game 2 win over LA

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SALT LAKE CITY — The Utah Jazz host the Los Angeles Clippers in Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals Thursday night.

The top-seeded Jazz are coming off a 112-109 win over the Clippers to take Game 1 of what many are already calling the most competitive and entertaining matchup of the second round.

Click here for live stats after tipoff at 8 p.m. MT.

Follow live reaction and commentary below.

Thursday, 11:24 pm

3 takeaways from Utah's 117-111 win over the Clippers

1. Donovan Mitchell is a Super SaiyanIf there was any doubt if the Jazz's fourth-year superstar could keep up his incredible scoring pace — he entered Thursday night averaging 31.8 points in the 2021 playoffs — he pushed them aside in 1 minute, 42 seconds.Mitchell scored 8 of the first 10 points of the game for the Jazz en route to a 10-2 lead and never let up. The 6-foot-2 shooter had 27 points on 11 of 16 field goals in the first half, including five 3-pointers that helped turn a 1-point lead after the first quarter into a double-digit advantage at the break.Mitchell finished with 37 points on 15-of-29 shooting, a 51.7% field-goal percentage that doesn't do justice to how efficient and clinical he was before hitting a speed bump in the final period. Even then, he did what was best for the team, tying for the team lead with four assists and knocking down a game-sealing free throw while chants of "M-V-P! M-V-P!" rained down from the soldout crowd at Vivint Arena.He certainly was Thursday night. But he wasn't the only one, either.

2-0.#TakeNote pic.twitter.com/ngoFLaz314
— utahjazz (@utahjazz) June 11, 2021

2. Shooters gonna shootMitchell's good looks — and he had a lot of them — opened up his teammates on the perimeter, and they took advantage.Bojan Bogdanovic canned four of his first five shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, en route to 16 points. The Croatian wing shot an eye-popping 80% from the field through three quarters, and finished at a 62.5% clip that included 3 of 5 from three.Ditto for Jordan Clarkson, the NBA's sixth man of the year who felt his shot early and finished with 21 points on a 60% shooting percentage. Then, in the biggest moments, Joe Ingles stepped up and launched a volley of cold-hearted heaves from distance, finishing with 19 points on 7-of-10 shooting with a 57.1% stroke from distance.

Even Rudy Gobert was his usual self, with the three-time NBA defensive player of the year stuffing the stat sheet with 13 points, 20 rebounds and three blocked shots in the win.But the Utah's shooters were the story of Game 2 — and it wasn't just Mitchell (as good as he was).

J☕️3#TakeNote | @joeingles7 pic.twitter.com/NM5Hqw615I
— utahjazz (@utahjazz) June 11, 2021

3. Homeward boundThe Clippers desperately need a trip home, and what a time to get it. But this isn't new territory — Los Angeles also trailed Dallas 2-0 in the weirdest of ways in the first round.The Clippers famously went to seven games with Dallas after neither team could win a home game through six. That included a 113-103 and 127-121 loss to the Mavs in Game 1 and Game 2 in Los Angeles before Kawhi Leonard put the team on his back to win Game 7 in LA, but it's easy to wonder now how exhausted that made the All-Star superstar.To stave off elimination, the Clippers are going to need some home cookin' — and the help of their supporting staff. Sure, Leonard had 21 points Thursday night, Paul George added 27 and nine rebounds, and Reggie Jackson scored a team-high 29.But LA shot just 40 of 85 from the field and gave up 20 3-pointers to the best 3-point shooting team in the league.That's not a recipe for success — even against the No. 1 seed.

Thursday, 11:01 pm

Jazz close out Clips to take 2-0 lead into Los Angeles

The Jazz struggled during the fourth quarter.But boy, do they know how to finish to closeout Game 2 117-111 and take a 2-0 lead into Los Angeles.The Clippers opened the final stanza on a 7-2 spurt as Paul George cut the Jazz lead to 2 points, 95-93, with 9:16 remaining, and Reggie Jackson hit back-to-back triples to give LA its first lead of the second half, 101-99, with 6:37 remaining.With Mitchell stuck on 34 and kicking a chair in disgust on the sideline, it was time for the supporting staff to step up big.They did.Joe Ingles split a pair of defenders en route to the rim, Bojan Bogdanovic drained a 25-foot trey from Jordan Clarkson, and Utah reclaimed the lead with 5:54 to go and never trailed again.The surprising part was that Mitchell hardly had a hand in any of it. Bogey. Gobert. Even Royce O'Neale canned a trey to help push the Jazz's lead as high as 10 on a hovering Joe Ingles 3-pointer with 3:07 to go.Mitchell finished with 37 points and four assists, Clarkson scored 24 off the bench, and Joe Ingles added 19 points and six assists.Gobert supplied 13 points and 20 rebounds for the Jazz, Bogdanovic had 16 in the win.

Jazz get it done and take a 2-0 series lead 😤

Mitchell: 37 PTS | 4 AST
Gobert: 13 PTS | 20 REB
Clarkson: 24 PTS pic.twitter.com/pxDHbF7rv3
— Yahoo Sports (@YahooSports) June 11, 2021

Reggie Jackson led LA with 29 points, and Paul George added 10 of his 27 points in the fourth quarter to go along with 10 rebounds and six assists for the Clippers.Los Angeles' Kawhi Leonard scored 21 points with five assists.

Thursday, 10:20 pm

Free Bogey

Welcome to the party, Bojan Bogdanovic.The Jazz wing has hit 4 of 5 of his shots, including a pair of 3-pointers, for 13 points as Utah's shooters are hot on a surprisingly cool night in the Salt Lake Valley en route to a 93-86 lead after three quarters.As temperatures descend through the weekend, the Jazz shooters continue to heat up. Jordan "The Flamethrower" Clarkson has 24 points on 9-of-13 shooting, including 6 of 8 from deep, Joe Ingles has 15 points on 5 of 7 from the field, and Utah is shooting 56.9% from the field.And, of course, Mitchell has 30 points on 12-of-22 shooting, with four assists to boot.Reggie Jackson started feeling it for LA, too. The 6-foot-3 Boston College product had 16 points in the third quarter, and leads the Clippers with 21 points on 8-of-12 shooting.

This kid is pretty good eh? 😉

🔥 🔥 🔥

Carry on, @JordanClarksons 💪🏼 🇵🇭 https://t.co/RXizHzP71j
— TJ Manotoc (@tjmanotoc) June 11, 2021

Thursday, 10:07 pm

LeBron James is a fan of Donovan Mitchell

Very possible! Looking as much so far. That kid can flat out GO!!!!!! TOUGH!!!!
— LeBron James (@KingJames) June 11, 2021

Thursday, 09:29 pm

Mitchell supernova leads Jazz at the half

It's Donovan Mitchell's world, and the rest of Utah is just living in it.Mitchell had another double-digit scoring quarter — including his fifth 3-pointer just before the halftime buzzer — to push the Jazz lead to 66-53 at the break.Mitchell and Joe Ingles hit back-to-back threes to restore a double-digit lead to the Jazz, up 60-50 with 1:17 to play. The Jazz shot 45% from the field in the first quarter, while Mitchell kept up his torrid scoring pace with 13 points in the middle stanza.Mitchell has 27 points on 11-of-16 shooting, including 5 of 8 from behind the arc.Of course, he got plenty of help. Ingles finished with 9 points and four rebounds at the half, and Clarkson — the NBA's sixth man of the year — added 15 on 6-of-8 shooting off the bench, including three 3-pointers.But the Clippers wouldn't go away. In a first half that was the antithesis of Thursday's early playoff between Milwaukee and Brooklyn (which the Bucks won 86-83 to pull within 2-1 of the Nets), LA took 43 shots — including 11 3-pointers — to try to keep pace.Kawhi Leonard has 14 points and three assists at the half for the Clippers, and Paul George added 9 points and four assists before intermission.

DONOVAN MITCHELL IS FEELING IT 🔥 pic.twitter.com/NKplIts8YW
— NBA TV (@NBATV) June 11, 2021

Thursday, 08:51 pm

Clippers starters down big to Jazz early

Ty Lue's attempts to slow down the Jazz with a big starting five did not work, to say the least.At least, not early, as Donovan Mitchell scored 8 points to pace a 10-2 run in the first two minutes of the contest.The Clippers shot just 1 of 4 from the field, while Mitchell was unconscious early, connecting on a pair of 3-pointers that sent the capacity crowd into a frenzy twice just 1 minute, 42 seconds into the game — when Lue was forced to burn his first timeout.Perhaps the best thing that could've happened to the Clippers was Ivica Zubac drawing his second foul after just five minutes; LA calmed down after that, and only trailed 30-29 at the quarter break.Mitchell leads all scorers with 14 points on 6-of-9 shooting, and Jordan Clarkson has 5 points off the bench for Utah, which shot 66% from the field.Kawhi Leonard has 5 points and two assists for Los Angeles, and Paul George added 5 points and two assists — including a 3-pointer in the final minute to help pull the Clippers within one.

Spida is hot early 🔥

Eight points in the first two minutes of the game. pic.twitter.com/3km84rje5y
— ESPN (@espn) June 11, 2021

Thursday, 08:09 pm

Clippers go big in response to Game 1 loss

LA coach Tyronn Lue is switching his starting lineup, going with a big group of Reggie Jackson, Paul George, Kawhi Leonard, Marcus Morris and Ivica Zubac to try to slow down the Jazz. Tipoff is on ESPN.

.@Verizon Starting 5️⃣ vs. Utah

1️⃣ » @Reggie_Jackson
2️⃣ » @Yg_Trece
3️⃣ » @kawhileonard
4️⃣ » @MookMorris2
5️⃣ » @ivicazubac pic.twitter.com/YxFrZzd5v7
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) June 11, 2021

Thursday, 07:00 pm

Clippers focus on tough, physical play ahead of tipoff

Donovan Mitchell's game-high 45 points and Rudy Gobert's three blocks, including the game-sealing punch on a buzzer-beating 3-pointer, were the obvious keys to Utah's 112-109 win in Game 1.But if you ask the Clippers, the game was lost in that third quarter — when Mitchell's supernova was warming up — on the defensive end, where the Jazz were simply more physical than any of the Angelenos.Look for the Clippers to give the Jazz more of that in Game 2 — especially Mitchell."I just think having more impact," Clippers coach Tyronn Lue said before the game. "The guy guarding the ball has to be on the ball a little bit more. He's too good at rejecting, at splitting, and at dribbling around."The primary defender has to do a good job of being on his body more. He was just too comfortable last game … Last game was just way too easy."

On location. pic.twitter.com/HefeFVrzoy
— LA Clippers (@LAClippers) June 11, 2021

Lue says he'll plan to play 10-men deep in the first half, and re-evaluate the rotation at halftime. But one player who should be getting plenty of shots — besides Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, of course _ is Luke Kennard.The NBA's 11th-best 3-point shooter during the regular season, Kennard had 18 points on 7-of-9 shooting — including 4-of-6 from three — in Game 1."He's got a lot of confidence, and shooting the ball very well," Lue said. "I just wanted to give him an opportunity. I know the way Dallas was playing us, he could make some big shots for us."That carried over to Game 1 in Utah. If he's hitting some shots, that should open up the game for Kawhi and PG."

Thursday, 06:46 pm

Snyder talks Clarkson, crowd; Lue talks Mitchell, O'Neale ahead of Game 2

Here are some of the notable quotes from Jazz coach Quin Snyder and Clippers coach Ty Lue's media availability ahead of Game 2:Snyder on Utah's lack of turnovers in Game 1: "I'd like to not miss 20 straight shots, but you know by shooting the ball when we're open, you don't turn it over. There's obviously a balance there. When taking, if you have a good shooter, even a contested shot can be the right play. Because if you pass up that shot, particularly against a team that's as long, that helps as much as they do, that's as aggressive off the ball as the Clippers are, you're probably not going to get a better shot."Snyder on Jordan Clarkson: "I think the word that kind of jumps out in front with Jordan is authenticity. There's a sincerity about who he is as a person. He knows who he is. He's just a giving human being in so many respects. He's one of those people that we've all known — people when you walk in the door and your day gets better, and that's who he is.Snyder on the Jazz's home crowd: "I think they have an idea of when we need them more, and when we need them most. So if we do miss 20 some straight shots, I know everyone wants the next shot to go in, but they're still active, they're still loud, they're supportive and maybe even more so because your team may be struggling."Lue on Donovan Mitchell's Game 1: "He was just too comfortable last game so we got to show him a crowd, give him some different looks and make a little harder for him."Lue on Royce O'Neale's Game 1: "He did a good job of getting into Kawhi, denying him the basketball. We've got to do a better job of owning our space."— Ryan Miller, KSL.com

Thursday, 06:45 pm