A depleted Utah Jazz roster fell to the Los Angeles Lakers 127-115 in overtime at the Staples Center on Saturday in the second game of a back-to-back and the first of consecutive meetings between the two teams. The Jazz and Lakers play again on Monday.
High notes
- Jordan Clarkson was relentless on Saturday. He continued to push and attack throughout the game, and in the end it was Clarkson who the Jazz decided to give the ball to when the game was on the line. He converted on the Jazz’s biggest shot, hitting a 3 with 8.7 seconds left in regulation. Clarkson played 46 minutes and 7 seconds in just his second game after missing four straight with an ankle sprain. In overtime he was less effective on the offensive end but he wouldn’t give up on the hustle plays. He finished with 27 points, five rebounds and four assists.
“Oh, 46 minutes? I didn’t see that. I wish we’d ended in regulation. But my ankle is feeling good, just tired, probably soreness still left in there. We competed, played hard tonight. It’s good we’ve got a rest day tomorrow and I’ll be ready to go on the next game, just fatigued, tired. I haven’t played that many minutes in a long time.” —Jordan Clarkson
- If we’re being honest, the best thing about this game for the Jazz is that they are able to take a lot of positives from the way the mostly bench lineup was able to play down the stretch of regulation, and even though they lost, it doesn’t say much of anything about the Jazz as a team.
- Ersan Ilyasova had played in just eight games with the Jazz prior to starting at the five on Saturday against the Lakers. He wasted absolutely no time showing his offensive value, hitting 5 of 5 from 3-point range in the first quarter alone, and he had some really big defensive moments, including a late block on Kyle Kuzma.
“This is the beauty of this team: Everybody is ready. It’s a long season, a lot of ups and downs as far as injuries and things like that. When I look at this team everybody is ready. Obviously sometimes you do have low minutes, but you do your work, and obviously get ready and when your name is called just get out there and do whatever necessary.” — Ersan Ilyasova
- The Jazz held the Lakers scoreless for more than six straight minutes in the fourth quarter as they were coming back from a 14-point deficit. They weren’t able to stop the Lakers in the overtime period, but that stretch, when the only regular starters playing were Royce O’Neale and Bojan Bogdanovic, is worthwhile. If for no other reason than it gives the reserve guys confidence in what they can do when they’re focused and engaged. There were also some really good zone minutes from the Jazz.
“Just to be able to fight back in the game and have a chance to win it was really good. Once we get guys back healthy we’ll do a good job of holding that paint down and stopping them from getting those easy baskets.” —Jordan Clarkson
- O’Neale had a couple of big dunks and a shot clock-beating 3-pointer. His shooting percentages were not great but he was less hesitant, and hopefully for him the buckets he was able to hit will give him a little more confidence moving forward.
- The Lakers defense — even without LeBron James and Anthony Davis — is formidable, and that should really be the Jazz’s biggest takeaway from this game. They already know what Dennis Schroder is capable of on drives and the quickness that he plays with, but contending with the Lakers defense is going to be a challenge if these teams happen to meet in the playoffs. Even without Donovan Mitchell, Mike Conley, Rudy Gobert and Derrick Favors playing on Saturday, there are lessons that can be taken from this game.
Low notes
- The Jazz had the lead with three seconds left in regulation, but not having a rim protector and continuing their trend of playing lackluster transition defense gave the Lakers the opening they needed to send the game into overtime.
- Ilyasova quieted down offensively after the first quarter. Part of that was due to the Lakers defense which was stifling and part of it was a less aggressive approach from Ilyasova.
- The Lakers, pushing the ball inside against the Jazz’s smaller lineup, were able to get the Jazz in foul trouble, own the paint and dominate the glass. The Lakers had 11 offensive rebounds, but it felt more like 20.
Flat notes
- Andre Drummond becoming the fast-break beast of the game made the Jazz look horrible. When a big, lumbering type player is running the floor better than anyone else, your defense is failing.
- The Lakers came out pretty hot in the third quarter and the Jazz, in contrast, coughed up eight turnovers in the third quarter alone. They wouldn’t have had to fight so hard in the fourth if not for the third quarter mistakes.
- Scott Foster feels like the one official in the league who needs to assert himself as the dominant force every night. I don’t know how Clarkson got a technical foul while he was dribbling and being fouled, but I guess whatever he said was enough to earn the Jazz their second technical of the game. The first one came from Bogdanovic complaining after a drive, which is old hat at this point. Still, I hate punishing players for being passionate and invested in the game.
- ESPN could not have been happy that the game slated for Saturday afternoon was missing all of the biggest stars from both teams and then went into overtime.