Ingles’ Breakout Performance Leads Utah Past Memphis

Ingles got it going in pick-and-roll and from the perimeter as Utah beat Memphis. (Game still)

The NBA Restart has been anything but magical for the Utah Jazz, as they were 1-2 in their first three games back from the league’s long hiatus. The Jazz have struggled offensively as they ranked No. 20 out of 22 bubble teams in field goal percentage (42.5%) and No 21. from 3-point range (25.9%). But against the Memphis Grizzlies on Wednesday afternoon, the Jazz found answers to a lot of their questions as they broke the slump with a 124-115 win and moved back into sole possession of fourth place in the Western Conference.

It took the Jazz a while to get rolling as their struggles continued to begin the game against Memphis. In the first five minutes of the contest, Utah turned the ball over five times. Bad passes and dropped balls plagued the Jazz through the first quarter and Memphis took advantage as they got out to a 31-25 lead at the end of one.

The Jazz trailed by as many as 13 in second quarter, with Memphis guard Dillon Brooks scoring at will and talliying 20 first half points. It seemed the Jazz weren’t going to have the break out game everyone was expecting until Georges Niang hit a three ball at the five-minute mark and everything changed. That bucket was followed by several Rudy Gobert dunks, a high flying put back by Donovan Mitchell and an assortment of 3-pointers that led to a 25-3 run by the Jazz to finish the second quarter.

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This whole sequence from @spidadmitchell 🕷💜

A post shared by Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) on Aug 5, 2020 at 12:59pm PDT

Jazz basketball was back in the second half of Wednesday’s game as each of starters got to their spots and combined for 102 of the teams 124 total points. The Jazz finally saw the 3-pointers drop as they shot 18 for 45 from deep opposed to 12 for 43 in their previous game against the Lakers on Monday night. In addition, The Jazz stepped up defensively as they held Brooks to just three second half points and put the clamps down on explosive rookie Ja Morant, allowing him just two points in the game’s fourth quarter.

Performance of the Game

While this was one of the best all-around team performances by the Jazz this season, Joe Ingles’ performance was absolutely outstanding. He had a game high 25 points and was jinglin’ from outside as he went 6/11 from 3-point range. Ingles also tallied 5 assists and was able to run his famous pick n’ roll with Gobert on a few offensive sets.

“It’s really trying to be versatile and take what is given,” Ingles said in his postgame interview. “We were aggressive and we were just accomplished shooters. We will keep doing it and keep shooting. I think we will have more games like this.”

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𝐅𝐈𝐕𝐄 threes for Joseph Howarth Ingles 🇦🇺

A post shared by Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) on Aug 5, 2020 at 2:07pm PDT

Notable Performances

While Joe led the way, Mike Conley was also fantastic against his former team as he contributed 23 points, went 4-9 from beyond the arc and tallied a team-high seven assists. Conley seems to finally be settling in with his new role as he’s averaged 19.7 PPG since the NBA resumed.

Gobert had an impressive double-double of 21 points and 16 rebounds against Memphis. He also blocked three shots and had an impressive plus/minus of +21 on the floor, demonstrating his defensive superiority and presence.

Royce O’Neale continues to contribute in a major yet under the radar kind of way as he scored 15 points. This included a timely 3-pointer that put the Jazz up 110-105 with 5 minutes left in the fourth quarter.

Notable Statistic

In addition to the Jazz shooting 40% from 3-point range, the Jazz scored 30 points from the free throw line as they shot an overall 90.9%. This was a huge difference maker as the Jazz only won by 9 points.

The Jazz are now 2-2 since the NBA start and have reclaimed the No. 4 spot from the Houston Rockets with a half-game lead.

Utah will face San Antonio on Friday at 11 A.M. MT.