Player grades: Chet Holmgren leads Thunder to 119-107 win over Jazz
OKLAHOMA CITY — Catching the ball from the left wing, Chet Holmgren took a single dribble before he jumped and viciously completed the one-handed slam as Taylor Hendricks attempted to contest. The seven-foot rookie celebrated the highlight dunk by flexing and raising the roof.
The Oklahoma City Thunder utilized a strong second half to collect a 119-107 win over the Utah Jazz. Holmgren’s poster spotlighted one of his best performances of the season.
“Credit Utah, they really competed tonight,” Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said on the win. “Especially first half, I thought they were the more physical team after the first six minutes of the game. That really tested us. I thought in the second half, we showed really good persistence.
“We tried to amp it up on the defensive end. The game didn’t open up for us right away but we kept at it. That group to start the fourth quarter really ignited the rest of the game. I thought it was a good game for us, good resilience by the team and a good test.”
After building an 18-6 lead in the opening minutes, the Thunder exited the first quarter with a 31-25 lead. A 13-5 run by the Jazz in the second quarter saw them tie the contest at 44 apiece. Utah utilized a 29-point second frame to put OKC in a 54-53 deficit at halftime.
After trailing by four points, the Thunder rattled off 11 consecutive points to retake the lead at 68-61 with a little under eight minutes left in the third quarter. The Jazz got it within one point several times in the frame, but couldn’t retake the lead. OKC held a small 82-80 lead after the first three frames.
Any drama of a close contest coming down to the final seconds was quickly dispelled as OKC started the fourth quarter on an 18-6 run to create a 14-point lead with a little over eight minutes left.
After Utah turned it into a 100-90 contest, OKC went on a 12-3 run to build a 19-point lead with four minutes left. The Thunder cruised the rest of the way for the double-digit win over the short-handed Jazz.
“We want to be a 48-minute team and we want to be a team where any unit at any time can go on a little flurry like that,” Daigneault said about their fourth quarter.
The Thunder shot 49% from the field and went 10-of-34 (29.4%) from 3. They went 23-of-29 from the free-throw line. They dished out 29 assists on 43 baskets. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander and Holmgren combined for 66 points on 60% shooting.
Meanwhile, the Jazz — without Lauri Markannen and Jordan Clarkson — shot 44% from the field and went 10-of-36 (27.8%) from 3. They went 17-of-18 from the free-throw line. They had 20 assists on 40 baskets.
Collin Sexton scored 25 points on 12-of-19 shooting and had seven assists off the bench. John Collins finished with 16 points and six rebounds. Taylor Hendricks had 12 points and four rebounds.
It took a bit, but the Thunder ran away from this contest thanks to a second-half push. OKC’s 37-point fourth quarter helped collect a third straight win. It was a necessary win for the Thunder against a squad hoping to keep their first-round pick with losses.
Let’s look at Thunder player grades.
