MANILA – Utah Jazz leaned on Jordan Clarkson’s first-half exploits to score a 126-94 victory over San Antonio Spurs in the 2020-2021 National Basketball Association season on Wednesday night at the Vivint Smart Home Arena in Salt Lake City, Utah.
With the triumph, the Jazz climbed to the top spot in the Western Conference with a 48-19 slate.
The Filipino-American guard top-scored with 30 points – 10 came from the opening half, while Bojan Bogdanovic made 24 markers for the Jazz.
Joe Ingles, Georges Niang, and Rudy Gobert contributed 14, 11, and 10 markers, respectively, for Utah, which played without Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley.
The Jazz set the tone early with conversions from Bogdanovic and Clarkson for a 38-26 lead. It grew further in the second period with Ingles firing 11 straight points for a 66-42 halftime spread.
Utah went for the kill in the second half with Bogdanovic, Clarkson, and Niang connecting their outside shots to take the fight away from the Spurs.
Luka Samanic ended with 15 points, Devin Vassell and Drew Eubanks added 14 markers each, while Tre Jones dropped 11 markers as the Spurs dropped its record to 31-34.
Phoenix Suns (47-19), meanwhile, failed to tie the Jazz at the West’s first spot after suffering a 135-105 defeat at the hands of the Atlanta Hawks (37-30).
Clint Capela led the Hawks with 18 points and 10 rebounds, Trae Young had a double-double of 16 points and 12 assists, while Bogdan Bogdanovic finished with 16.
Philadelphia 76ers (45-21), on the other hand, solidified its hold on the East’s top spot with a 135-105 mauling of Houston Rockets (16-50). Joel Embiid tallied a double-double of 34 points and 12 rebounds for the 76ers.
In other results, Boston Celtics (35-31) cruised to a 132-96 win over Orlando Magic (21-45), Sacramento Kings (29-37) toppled Indiana Pacers (30-35), 104-93; and Portland Trail Blazers (37-29) prevailed over Cleveland Cavaliers (21-45), 141-105.
BOX SCORE:
UTAH 126 – Clarkson 30, Bogdanovic 24, Ingles 14, Niang 11, Gobert 10, Oni 6, Hughes 6, Forrest 6, O’Neale 5, Brantley 5, Thomas 5, Favors 4, Ilyasova 0, Morgan 0.
SAN ANTONIO 94 – Samanic 15, Vassell 14, Eubanks 14, Jones 11, Poeltl 8, Murray 7, Walker 7, DeRozan 6, Johnson 6, Dieng 3, Bates-Diop 3, Gay 0, Mills 0.
QUARTERSCORES:
38-26, 66-42, 100-63, 126-94./PN
