By Bill Lea, utahjazz.com
It was a matchup of the NBA’s top offense vs. the league’s stingiest defense. On this night, the impressive offense of the Warriors won out.
The Jazz dropped to 31-38 on the season, 12-4 since the All-Star break. The win improved Golden State to an NBA-best 56-13, including another NBA-best, 33-2 at home.
Derrick Favors scored a team-high 21 points and collected 11 rebounds. Trey Burke added 20 for the Jazz off the bench, 13 of which came in the second half to keep the game close until the final few minutes.
Rookie Rodney Hood (19 points on 9-for-14 shooting) was another bright spot on a night that saw Gordon Hayward struggle with his shot.
Steph Curry led the home team with 24 points and showed why he is an MVP candidate.
Game Highlights
Saturday’s Best
While Derrick Favors led the Jazz in scoring, we have to give the nod to Rodney Hood on this night. The rookie kept the Jazz in the game with his hot 9-for-14 shooting. Hood was aggressive with his drives and hit on 8 of 10 shots in the paint.
Key Stretch
After trailing by 14 points, the Jazz went on an 8-0 run, capped by a Favors 3-point play and a long Burke 3-pointer. The run closed the gap to 89-83 with 8:30 remaining and forced a Golden State timeout.
However, the Warriors scored the next seven points to extend their lead to 96-83 and the Jazz were never able to recover.
Significant Stat(s)
106. The Jazz had held 20 straight opponents to 100 points or less, but the league’s best offense was able to top the mark despite playing without All-Star Klay Thompson. Utah did hold Golden State to 49 first half points, the first time the Warriors had been held under 50 at home since December 10, 2014.
Golden State held a significant edge in fastbreak points, outscoring the Jazz 25-6 in transition.
Coach’s Quote of the Night
On Derrick Favors' first career three-pointer:
3-Point Spotlight
Derrick Favors(!) started the game off by hitting his first career 3-pointer. As a team, Utah hit on 10-for-22 from deep. Trey Burke led the way by drilling 5-for-11 beyond the arc to provide the bulk of the outside shooting. Additionally… Hayward, Hood, Ingles and Millsap each knocked down a three.
Block of the Night
Early in the fourth quarter, Harrison Barnes missed a mid-range jumper for Golden State. Marreese Speights grabbed the rebound and Derrick Favors rejected his put-back attempt. The Jazz only managed two blocks on the night, both by Favors.
Notable
Rudy Gobert had a relatively quiet game and did not record a block. The big man did manage 5 points, 9 rebounds, 3 assists and a steal. ... Rookie Danté Exum went scoreless for the third straight game. ... The Jazz shot just 31.6% in the opening quarter.
Up Next
The Jazz will return home for a game Monday night against the Minnesota Timberwolves. Tipoff is set for 7:00 p.m. MT and the game will be televised on ROOT SPORTS.