Bojan Bogdanovic hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to lift the Utah Jazz to a 114-113 victory over the host Houston Rockets on Sunday.
Bogdanovic had just two field goals and eight points for the night, 13 below his season average. But Utah executed the final inbound play to perfection, with Bogdanovic making a 28-footer over James Harden and P.J. Tucker, the final clutch 3 in a sequence of them down the stretch.
The Jazz took a 103-100 lead on a Bogdanovic 3-pointer with 4:18 left and extended that lead to 107-100, their largest of the night, on a Donovan Mitchell jumper in the lane. But the Rockets responded, with Harden registering a triple-double (28 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists) with his pass to Robert Covington, whose 3-pointer with 28 seconds left gave the Rockets a 110-109 advantage.
Mitchell responded with two free throws after a Tucker foul, only for Tucker to hit a corner 3-pointer with 1.6 seconds left that pushed Houston back in front. Bogdanovic had the final word.
Jordan Clarkson paced the Jazz with 30 points off the bench while Mitchell added 24 and six assists. Rudy Gobert had 12 points and 15 rebounds.
Russell Westbrook led the Rockets with 39 points. After a hot start from the perimeter, Houston shot just 10 of 33 from behind the arc over the final three periods.
The first quarter represented an offensive ideal for the Rockets. Twelve of their 14 field goals came via layups or 3-pointers, with Westbrook closing the period with four consecutive driving layups immediately following Ben McLemore, Tucker and Harden combining for four 3s.
But the Jazz found their offensive rhythm in the second period by countering the Rockets' small-ball attack. Three-pointers from Clarkson, Georges Niang and Royce O'Neale helped Utah close an 11-point deficit to 48-45 midway through the period. The Rockets responded with an 8-1 spurt, only for Utah to cut the gap to four at halftime on a Mike Conley layup. Conley finished with 20 points.
Momentum swung back and forth for the remainder of the game.
--Field Level Media
Utah | Houston | |
Jordan Clarkson 30 | Scoring | Russell Westbrook 39 |
Joe Ingles 7 | Assists | James Harden 10 |
Rudy Gobert 15 | Rebounds | James Harden 10 |
Rudy Gobert 6 | Free Throws Made | James Harden 4 |
Rudy Gobert 1 | Steals | Danuel House Jr. 4 |
Royce O'Neale 3 | Blocks | James Harden 2 |
Team | Points | FG% | 3PM-3PA | FTM-FTA | Assists | Rebounds | Blocks | Steals | Turnovers |
Utah | 114 | 48.8 | 15-38 | 15-18 | 25 | 48 | 4 | 2 | 16 |
Houston | 113 | 46.3 | 15-42 | 10-14 | 20 | 36 | 5 | 10 | 8 |