Spurs surge past Jazz 119-97 as Dylan Harper runs the show
The Spurs beat the Jazz 119-97 on Monday 2 November, with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists from Dylan Harper. San Antonio move to 5-2 and Utah fall to 1-6 in the Western Conference.
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Two points conceded at the start, then an 8-0 run in under a minute: the Spurs outran the Jazz and won 119-97 on Monday 2 November at the Frost Bank Center, in front of 18,464 spectators. Dylan Harper finished with 17 points, 7 rebounds and 8 assists, with a plus-minus of +16 in 27 minutes. Utah led only at the start (2-0). San Antonio then built a lead of up to 26 points, in the fourth quarter (97-71).
The result lifts San Antonio to 5-2, 5th in the Western Conference in the standings of 3 November. The Jazz drop to 1-6 and sit 14th. The injury report listed Jayden Quaintance and Tobias Harris as out for San Antonio, and Jusuf Nurkic, Trey Alexander and Jaren Jackson Jr. for Utah.
An 18-4 start, and a Jazz side that closes to within a point
Utah opened the scoring (2-0). At 8-4, San Antonio found another gear, 10-0 this time: 18-4 with 6:04 left in the quarter. The first period ended 27-16 to San Antonio.
The Jazz responded in the second quarter, which they won 33-32. An 8-0 run, from 35-26 to 35-34, put them within a point. The Spurs retook the lead (37-34 with 6:34 left) and went into the locker room at 59-49.
The third quarter shuts the door
At 75-61, the Jazz were still 14 points behind. A 7-0 run pushed Utah back to 80-61, and the quarter ended at 94-69, a 35-20 quarter for San Antonio. At the start of the final quarter, the gap reached 26 points (97-71).
Utah still managed a 9-0 run, from 106-81 to 106-90, with 4:05 left. The last quarter was theirs, 28-25, but the outcome was never again in doubt: 119-97.
Players of the match
San Antonio. Dylan Harper did a bit of everything: 17 points on 6 of 10 shooting, 7 rebounds, 8 assists and 2 steals in 27 minutes. Stephon Castle added 16 points, 5 rebounds and 4 assists, for a +24 in 26 minutes. Off the bench, Keldon Johnson (15 points, 7 rebounds) and Harrison Barnes (13 points, 3 of 4 from three-point range) made their weight felt. De'Aaron Fox had 12 points on 5 of 8 shooting, with a +14 in 22 minutes.
Victor Wembanyama posted more contrasting numbers: 12 points, 11 rebounds and 3 blocks in 24 minutes, with a +9. He did, however, miss 10 of his 15 shots, including all five from three-point range, and turned the ball over 5 times.
Utah. Lauri Markkanen produced the Jazz's best line: 22 points, 8 rebounds and 4 of 7 from three-point range in 31 minutes. His plus-minus is nonetheless -23. Darryn Peterson added 14 points, 6 assists, 3 steals and 3 blocks in 33 minutes. Keyonte George had the opposite kind of night: 7 points on 3 of 12 shooting, 3 turnovers and a -30 in 22 minutes. Josh Okogie, who has a Nigeria connection, had 9 points, including 6 of 6 from the free-throw line, with a +7 in 19 minutes.
Three takeaways
A lead built in bursts. San Antonio won the first quarter by 11 points (27-16) and the third by 15 (35-20). Those two spells made the difference, which reached 26 points at its widest. Utah won the second and fourth quarters, but by only 1 and 3 points.
The gap came from inside the arc and from passing. From three-point range, the two teams were close: 11 of 32 for the Spurs, 12 of 34 for the Jazz. The Spurs also dished out 27 assists to 16 and made 24 free throws to 17. Both teams pulled down 53 rebounds. They turned the ball over 12 and 11 times.
A 1-6 Jazz side that responds in waves. Utah put together an 8-0 run and then a 9-0 run, but never retook the lead after the opening. Markkanen (-23) and George (-30) finish with the heaviest plus-minus figures of the players mentioned above. The Jazz sit 14th in the West.
The SNA view
This win shows in the spread of the scoring. Six Spurs scored 12 points or more (Harper 17, Castle 16, Johnson 15, Barnes 13, Wembanyama 12, Fox 12), even though Wembanyama missed all five of his three-point attempts. That profile points to a team that did not depend on its centre's shooting to open up the gap: he still made his mark with 11 rebounds and 3 blocks. At this rate, the Jazz's main problem shows up in their collective play more than in their outside shooting, which is close to that of their opponent.
What next
San Antonio (5-2) host the Dallas Mavericks on 5 November at 3:30 Brazzaville time. Utah (1-6) travel to face the New Orleans Pelicans the same day at 2:00 Brazzaville time.