No George Hill. No Derrick Favors. No problem for the Utah Jazz, who closed their road trip in style, taking down the Heat 102-91 in Miami on Saturday night.
Hill (sprained thumb) missed his fourth straight game, and Favors (sore knee) left the game for good after scoring six points in the first six minutes. Gordon Hayward, though, led the way with 25 points to help the Jazz (7-4) finish their five-game Eastern Conference trip with a 4-1 record.
Rudy Gobert stuffed the stat sheet with 12 points, 12 rebounds, two steals and two blocks, while Rodney Hood added 17 points in the win.
Center Hassan Whiteside led Miami with 15 points, 14 rebounds and two blocks in the loss. James Johnson (15 points) and undrafted rookie Rodney McGruder (14 points) had solid games off the bench for the Heat.
Saturday’s Best
Hayward scored 20+ points for the fifth straight game, and he’s now averaging 24.4 points per game this season. Hayward was strong in the lane, converting four three-point plays, and he added nine rebounds and four assists (with a net rating of +21) in 35 minutes. One negative to his game, though … he missed his first free throw of the season and currently sits at a meager 97.0 percent (32-for-33) from the free-throw line.
Key Stretch
Starting with a 3-pointer by Dante Exum, the Jazz opened the third quarter on a 10-0 run to take a 15-point lead. Miami missed 10 staight shots (well, 12 if you count two bricked free throws) and didn’t score a second-half point until there was 6:20 left in the third quarter.
Significant Stat
36.7
Miami’s bench closed with a strong fourth quarter, but the Jazz wrapped this one up early by containing the Heat’s starters. Miami’s starting five combined to shoot only 18-for-49 (36.7 percent) from the field, and each one had a negative net rating.
Coach’s Quote of the Night
“It’s a good win. The NBA season is packed with adversity … and we were fortunate to get a win tonight. You can’t dwell on the adversity as much as what you’re going to do with it. We had some guys who were confident and then stepped up.”
Jazz head coach Quin Snyder
Notable
Shelvin Mack (12 points) and Joe Johnson (10 points) scored in double figures off the bench for the Jazz. … Goran Dragic (Miami’s starting point guard) missed the game with a sprained ankle. … Utah led by as many as 21 points in the second half. … The Jazz outscored the Heat 11-2 on second-chance points.
Up Next
The Jazz will return home to face the Memphis Grizzlies on Monday. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. MT, and the game will be televised on ROOT SPORTS.
