Utah Pulls Away From Denver in Chippy Divisional Showdown

January 23rd, 2019 | by Steve Godfrey

Mitchell scored 35 as the Jazz put away Denver. (Rick Bowner via espn.com)

The Denver Nuggets came to Wednesday night’s contest with the Jazz having lost seven straight games in Utah. Donovan Mitchell and company made sure to stretch that streak to eight, defeating Denver 114-108. 

Mitchell entered averaging 29.8 points per game over the last nine games, and didn’t slow down on Wednesday as he lit the Nuggets for 35 points. He tied his season-high with six made triples, to go along with six assists and six rebounds. The anchor Rudy Gobert notched another double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds and the bench mob pitched in 33 points. As a team, the Jazz shot 41 percent from deep, 19-for-46, in contrast to Denver’s 8-of-27 outing. 

Remember, Denver is good as they’ve soared to a 31-15 record on the season. Even in the toughest division in the NBA, they were 6-0 against Northwest foes before the game in Utah as they’ve established themselves as the divison leaders. Soon-to-be All-Star Nikola Jokic is an MVP-candidate playing all-around basketball unheard of from the center position. In the month of January, he’s had four triple-doubles and he nearly added another to his collection with his 28-point, 21-rebound and six-assist performance in Utah.

Denver may have the second best record in the West, but they are just pedestrian away from the Pepsi Center, with an 11-11 road record. Yet, if the playoffs started Wednesday night, Denver and Utah would be playing as a first round matchup, #2 seed versus the #7 seed, matchup. It’s only January, but both teams seemed to understand the postseason implications and played with an intense effort for a divisional slugfest. 

Speaking of slugfests…

Late in the first quarter, Mason Plumlee and Derrick Favors got into a light tussle as both bigs went after it under the hoop as Plumlee snagged an offensive rebound. There were words and then some shoving before players were ultimately separated.

The two had been playing physical up to that point, but nothing malicious, as Favors’ frustrations at that point spilled over into an arm jab and push. The refs called it a double-technical, with a single-technical ejection for both1. In addition, in the madness, Gary Harris, Jamal Murray, and even Jokic, all on the sidelines at that point, appeared to leave the immediate bench area, and then moved toward the altercation on the baseline. That could warrant a one-game suspension for each of the three when the Nuggets play the Suns on Friday. The NBA will review the film on Thursday and make a determination. 

Royce O’Neale and Will Barton also received technicals for their involvement in the shoving shindig. As the game continued, so did the chippiness. Jae Crowder and Jokic needed to be separated after exchanging pleasantries in the second quarter. It was a game that mattered to both teams and it showed. 

First Half

Things started off on the right note as the Jazz had an 8-0 start in the first two minutes. Back in the starting lineup after dealing with a hamstring injury, Ricky Rubio played phenomenally to begin the game going 3/3 from the floor en route to eight points and three assists in the first five minutes. The man bun was fresh. 

In turn, the Jazz were making Denver work for buckets and kept them from making a three in the first stanza while the Jazz made five of 11 attempts themselves. It was a 30-24 ballgame after one. 

Then, reserve scoring threat Will Barton came alive. He scored eight quick points in a myriad of ways to put the ballgame into a back-and-forth battle. Before the horn buzzed for halftime, Mitchell went 4-of-5 from deep in the last four minutes of the quarter to take a 65-58 lead into intermission. Spida had 16 points at the break and was +16 on the floor. 

Second Half

Denver kept it interest, but the Jazz used an 11-2 run in three minutes capped by another DM triple to stay in control. During that run, the defense was dominant in forcing the Nuggets to three straight turnovers, and eight in the third quarter. As of late, you can count on Mitchell for buckets but also the defense to stifle. As a unit, the defense has been on a tear with which fans have grown accustomed to. Despite the early season struggles, the Jazz are right back in the top-five of most defensive metrics.

For Wednesday night, the Jazz defense held Denver to 29 percent from three and forced the Nuggets into 16 turnovers, included two five-second inbound violations. (One of those was a critical stop down the stretch.) The Jazz were getting in passing lanes (seven steals) and protecting the paint (seven blocks) while switching and making life difficult for most Nuggets. Even Jokic, who displayed his offensive talent, grew frustrated with how many bodies were being thrown at him. 

At one point, the Jazz had a 15-point lead in the third quarter, but it was trimmed 88-80 by the end of the third quarter as Barton hit a contested three to get the lead under double-digits. 

The lead soon got down to four as former Jazzman Trey Lyles nailed a midrange swish. Mitchell went into the lane to get a tough and-one and then had a three kiss the rim and bounce softly in. Just like that, the Jazz were back up double-digits and kept the foot on the peddle to the win. 

Play of the Game

For me, this highlight had it all: a sweet pass, a buzzer-beater, a bank-shot, and trash talk. 

For others, maybe you prefer an incredible corner three-and-one. 

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