When Will Hardy met with the media pregame, he talked about the difficulties the Jazz would face against the Lebron-less Lakers. He reiterated that winning an NBA game is hard enough, but teams without their stars are some of the most difficult opponents to face.
It took about two and half quarters before Utah began playing its brand of basketball on both ends of the court. But once they did, it was a thing of beauty.
Led by seven players in double figures, the Jazz took down the Lakers 139-116 on Monday night for their third-straight victory.
"Great team win," Hardy said. "I thought the first half our defense was lacking, our physicality wasn't very good. Credit to our guys. … They dug in at halftime, upped the physicality and energy on the defensive end, and continued to move the ball on the offensive end."
Playing the second leg of a back-to-back and against an opponent they faced just four days ago, Utah knew it wasn't going to be easy.
Los Angeles made some adjustments — primarily getting the ball to Anthony Davis as much as possible. But after a dominant first half in which he scored 19 points, the Jazz limited him to 10 in the second behind the play of Lauri Markkanen.
Markkanen's performance was even more impressive in his ability to defend Davis on one end and be unstoppable on the other. He dominated in the second half (13 points in the third), finishing with 23 points on 10-of-15 shooting from the floor.
"I thought in the second half, Lauri, who was the primary matchup, did a much better on the ball by not letting Davis' first dribble get so deep into the lane," Hardy said. "I thought Lauri did a great job in the second half to use his physicality and foot speed."
Playing against his former team, Talen Horton-Tucker made his presence felt with arguably his best game in a Utah uniform.
Coming off the bench, he was a walking highlight reel that ignited the Vivint Arena crowd nearly every time he touched the ball. Whether it was his shooting from deep (1-for-3) or his ridiculous dunks in transition, Horton-Tucker continues to be the spark Utah needs to help run its second unit.
He finished with a season-high 15 points and a +19 rating, adding three rebounds, three assists, and three steals.
From an offensive perspective, the first half was as exciting as it gets. With both teams playing the second game of a back-to-back, defense was difficult to come by and both offenses took advantage.
Look to establish Davis early, the Lakers jumped out to a 7-2 lead with Davis getting things going on the opening possession. However, the Jazz would respond as Malik Beasley knocked down a pair of early three-pointers to tie the game at 13.
Down by two with four to play in the quarter, Utah exploded on an 18-8 run to end the first — highlighted by a Jordan Clarkson corner three-pointer at the buzzer for the 42-34 lead.
After expanding their lead to 11 early in the second, Davis and Austin Reaves caught fire for the Lakers. Los Angeles rattled off a 14-6 run to make it close as each team would exchange buckets the rest of the half.
The Jazz led 76-71 at the break.
Utah responded immediately to begin the third. A 10-2 run highlighted by five points from Markkanen gave the Jazz some breathing room — but the Lakers would keep fighting by cutting Utah's lead to 92-85 halfway through the quarter.
Not wanting to keep this game close, the Jazz exploded for an 18-5 run over the next four minutes. The run was punctuated by a massive dunk from Horton-Tucker over his former teammate Damian Jones, giving Utah a 115-98 lead entering the fourth.
Utah used a 9-0 run midway through the fourth quarter to put the game away, sealing the win.
"Tonight was another example that we are hard to guard when the ball moves," Hardy said. "They stayed with it for 48 minutes. The offense got us through in the first half, kept the ball moving, and hit some shots. At halftime, they dug in and played a much better second half."
Every starter finished in double figures for the Jazz, led by Clarkson's 22 points, four rebounds, and four assists. He was extremely efficient, shooting 8-of-12 from the floor and 5-for-6 from deep. Mike Conley added his second straight double-double against the Lakers, finishing with 14 points, 12 assists, and zero turnovers.
Beasley finished with 14 points (4-of-7 from deep), while Kelly Olynyk added 10 points. Collin Sexton came off the bench to chip in 17 points, five rebounds, and three assists.
Utah heads back on the road for three games on the east coast, beginning with a showdown on Wednesday night against Trae Young and the Atlanta Hawks. Tipoff is set for 5:30 p.m. MST.