Once again Utah Jazz will have to fight hard for victory until the last, once again capturing the first seed game in times of crisis. The Jazz have a 3-1 lead, 120-113, in the first round series against Memphis Grizzlies. Mike Conley drowned his former teammate.
Memphis Chryslice (8) – Utah Jazz (1) 113: 120 (boxcore), Series: 1-3
The former Chrysler and today’s Jazz Guard had only 11 points and 7 assists, but he was with some important plays during the crisis and destroyed all hope for Chryslys’ comeback. The guests’ top scorer was Donovan Mitchell, who finished the game with 30 points and 8 assists. Rudy Cobbett (17 and 8 rebounds) and Jordan Clarkson (24) are also known to be convincing at times.
However, for the entire 48 minutes, the first seed of the Western Conference was still germinating. Despite the obvious advantages of filming (Jazz: 17/34 trio, Memphis: 10/35), Utah was never able to split decisively. Their own offense ran cold or Memphis faced a strong fight.
Chryslice kept coming back in the fourth quarter with their attacks (64:40 points in the paint) in the back zone. D’Anthony Melton played a major role in this, scoring all 15 of his points in the final. Ja Morand had 23 points and 12 assists (but 8/21 FG and 1/7 trio) and became the first Grizzly to have 20 points / 10 assists in the playoffs.
Dillon Brooks (21), Johnson Jackson Jr. (21) and Jonas Valencianas (14 and 12 rebounds) both scored double digits, but as in Game 3, the home side were out of the air during the crisis. Memphis are now battling it out in the first round on Thursday night.
Mike Conley returns at ChrisLice-der Crunch Time
The Jazz started the game with a good rhythm, with several quick triples taking a 15:10 lead. The offense did a good job throughout the quarter (8 assists with 13 field goals), but on the other hand Memphis also had good results in the zone. Both teams reached nearly 55 percent off the field in the first quarter. With 34:31 to Utah it went to the second half.
As a result throw rates have dropped, but on both sides, so no team can really move away. At this point the ball stopped moving on the jazz side. Before Morant could respond, Mitchell reduced his downtown team to +9, scoring a 54:59 half-time from Chris Lies’ view.
Even after the break, Chris Lice pulled the perimeter defenders into the last zone, resulting in Memphis scoring 15: 6. Cobert has now received more touches on crime, and has sometimes spread under the basket. Thanks to several attacks from the French and Mitchell, Utah responded with its own 16: 6, with a three 0.9 seconds before Clarkson finally gave Utah the highest lead of the game to date (100: 87 Utah).
But the evil Chrysalis did not stick and stayed away from the strike with further attacks in the direction of the basket. At this point the guests ’offense was cold (0/9 FG at the start of the fourth quarter), and suddenly Memphis was 2 points behind a Melton trio.
A good five minutes before the end, Conley released Jazz’s suffering with the first field goal of the final division. Shortly afterwards he stole the ball from Morant Continued with another triple – and shortly thereafter Boktanovic Gold withdraws an attack, from the city. The result was a 10-point lead for Jazz over Memphis, which could no longer compete against the now-enhanced security of guests. Utah finally clarified everything from the free-throw line.
J.azz vs. Grizzlies: Series at a Glance
Sports | Date | Time | House | In the distance | Results |
1 | 24. May | 3.30am. | Jazz | Chrysalis | 109: 112 |
2 | 27. May | 4 p.m. | Jazz | Chrysalis | 141: 129 |
3 | 30. May | 3.30am. | Chrysalis | Jazz | 111: 121 |
4 | 1. June | 3.30am. | Chrysalis | Jazz | 113: 120 |
5 | 3. June | 3.30am. | Jazz | Chrysalis | |
6 * | 5. June | tba | Chrysalis | Jazz | |
7 * | 7. June | tba | Jazz | Chrysalis |