The Utah Jazz evened up their best-of-seven series with the Oklahoma City Thunder on Wednesday night with a 102-95 victory. The Jazz had been trailing most of the second half but outscored the Thunder 28-16 in the final quarter to earn the win on the road.
The Jazz closed as a four-point underdog at BetDSI sportsbook but in the end, not only covered the spread but also cashed as +150 underdog on the moneyline. In terms of the total, the game closed at 208 but the over never really threatened as the teams combined for just 197 points.
Utah got off to a great start in Game 2 as they were leading by one after the first quarter and by seven at the half. They were outscored 33-21 in the third quarter before bouncing back in the fourth. Once again, the Jazz were led by stellar rookie Donovan Mitchell, who poured in 28 points along with six rebounds, two assists and a steal. He didn’t hit a single shot from distance (0-for-7) but did hit eight of his nine free throws. The Jazz got a big effort from Derrick Favors, who scored 20 points and collected 16 rebounds. His performance was a big reason for the Jazz winning the battle on the boards 56-46.
The Thunder had mostly muted efforts from their big three as Russell Westbrook, Paul George and Carmelo Anthony each scored 19 or less. Worse yet was their efficiency as they combined to shoot 19-of-58, which really hurt the team. Steven Adams also had a minimal impact on this game as he battled foul trouble and eventually fouled out. He played just 22 minutes, scoring nine points and reeling in seven rebounds. Neither bench did much in this game as the Jazz bench produced 16 points while the Thunder were at 21. It was up to the starters in this one as the Jazz had three players at 20 or more while the Thunder had none.
Now the series will shift back to Utah for Game 3, which will tip-off at 10 PM ET on Saturday night.
