C
Clint Nielson
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Photo by Alex Goodlett/Getty Images
The Jazz extend the losing streak to 10 games.
No way to sugar-coat this, the Utah Jazz got blown out by the Cleveland Cavaliers. From the first six minutes of the contest, it was evident that the Cavs were playing smarter, harder, and with more talent than the rebuilding Jazz. This 129 to 113 loss marks 10 losses in a row for the Jazz.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25368419/2126140534.jpg "Cleveland Cavaliers v Utah Jazz")
Utah Native and Utah State University alumni Sam Merrill had a productive 18 points on six made threes. Former Jazzman Georges Niang contributed with 8 points off the bench. Levert, Garland, and Allen all had more than 20 points tonight. for the Jazz, Brice Sensabaugh had a career high of 22, Sexton had 19, and Hendricks had 18. The sophomore defensive dynamo, Walker Kessler, exited the game in the first half with a nose injury. The Jazz shot well (.482/.432/.833) but their offense was hampered by turnovers (19, including 7 from Sexton). The Jazz’s biggest issue tonight was defense. The Jazz played terrible defense to start the game, giving up uncontested layups and allowing anyone to drive inside the paint and kickout for open threes. The Cavs scored 40 points in the first quarter. While the Jazz played slightly better defense for the remaining three quarters, they never had a great stretch of defensive stops. Perhaps this should not be a surprise, the Jazz have the second worst defense in the league, giving up 120 points a night.
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25368421/2126139039.jpg "Cleveland Cavaliers v Utah Jazz")
Utah’s poor post all-star break play begs the question, when will the Jazz get their next win? will it be in April or next season in October or November?
/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_asset/file/25368422/2126140098.jpg "Cleveland Cavaliers v Utah Jazz")
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