LOS ANGELES -- Three games into the season is early to thank an opponent for a tough game.

However, the Los Angeles Clippers, with nine new players on their roster, welcomed the hard work they needed to hold off the Utah Jazz 102-84 on Tuesday night.

All five Clippers starters scored in double digits as Los Angeles improved to 3-0. Still, the defensive-minded Jazz bogged down the Clippers' offense in the second quarter and rallied from a 21-point deficit to draw within six in the final quarter.

Los Angeles guards Patrick Beverley and Austin Rivers each hit a 3-pointer in a 12-2 run after the Jazz closed to within six points.

Blake Griffin had 22 points on 8-for-17 shooting to go with nine rebounds and six assists, and Beverley added 19 points, making 7 of 14 field-goal attempts. Rivers, making his first start of the young season, added 16 points. DeAndre Jordan had 11 points and 18 rebounds, and Danilo Gallinari scored 14 points.

Rookie Donovan Mitchell led Utah (2-2) with 19 points, 15 of them coming in the final quarter. Rudy Gobert scored 12 points, nine of them in the third quarter when the Clippers held the Jazz to 13 points. Thabo Sefolosha had 11 points and 12 rebounds.

"We're not close to be where we want to be, but the spirit and chemistry is great, and that will hold us until we get better with our execution," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "We had to play a lot of guys too many minutes because of the game Utah gave us."

Beverley played 42 minutes and the other starters 35 minutes or more, including Austin Rivers, who had a short preseason because of injuries.

"There was a time in the second quarter when we had to go to a half-court offense, which we don't really have yet," Doc Rivers said. "But we had good stops and big buckets when we needed them."

Beverley said of the Jazz, "That's a good team. They're one of the best defensive teams in the league, one of those teams with a lot of veterans that everyone expects to make the playoffs because of the intense way they play defense. It was a good test for us."

The Clippers have won 19 of their past 21 regular-season games against the Jazz, but they lost to Utah in the first round of the playoffs last season in seven games.

"For the guys who were here last year, it was in the back of our mind," Jordan said. "For the new guys, we wanted to set a tone against a really good defensive team."

The Jazz boxed the Clippers out in the second quarter to make it a one-point game at the half. However, the Clippers reasserted themselves in the third quarter with a 18-2 run. The first nine points came in the first two minutes of the half, and Griffin had a turn-around jumper and a dunk in a transition to end the rush and make it 60-43.

The Clippers led by as much as 21 before Mitchell got as hot as the L.A. weather, hitting three consecutive 3-pointers as part of a 13-point explosion that cut the margin to six midway through the fourth quarter. Los Angeles responded with a 12-2 run to put the game away.

Mitchell struggled early but showed what kind of offense he can provide the Jazz.

"I didn't think about the shots I missed early," said Mitchell, who hit 7 of 20 from the floor. "We were down and I was just trying to provide a spark. We almost came all the way back."

Utah coach Quin Snyder said, "We just bring the ball up and look for the best shots, and we may take more time than other teams. We have to be who we are and know our personnel.

"We dug ourselves a hole, but I thought we did a good job fighting back in the game. I was happy we stuck in the game."

NOTES: Tests on Clippers G Milos Teodosic were negative for any tear in his left foot, which he injured in the Clippers' victory over Phoenix. He has plantar fasciitis and will be out an indefinite period. "It's not a tear, just a strain," Clippers coach Doc Rivers said. "But whatever he did, he did it well, which is why he's out indefinitely." Rivers said Jawun Evans and Sindarius Thornwell would be part of the guard rotation, but Evans did not play and Thornwell played just four minutes. ... Utah F Joe Ingles started despite struggling with intestinal distress earlier in the day. He scored three points in 18 minutes. ... G Rodney Hood (lower leg strain) and G Dante Exum (shoulder) were sidelined Tuesday for the Jazz.