10) March 30th vs. Golden State – Jazz Nearly Defeat Defending Champs
Utah Jazz 96 – Golden State Warriors 103 OT
I know, I know I’m sorry to start off with this one after just mentioning bad tastes in your mouth! But bear with me, this is the only loss on the list.
Yet, had this not been a loss (as it should not have been) this more than likely would have been number one. There’s no doubt about it, the Utah Jazz dominated this game, particularly the second half. Despite trailing by two at halftime, the Jazz held the Warriors to a meager 42 points in the first half, only the third time that had happened up to that point all year.
Heading into the fourth quarter, the Jazz led by six and truly were the dominant team in every aspect of the game…expect for one tiny little detail. The free throw line.
Utah had several chances to shut the door on the Warriors, including in the final seconds when Golden State had to foul to extend the game, but they couldn’t close the deal. The Jazz shot just 4 of 14 from the line in the final quarter allowing a Klay Thompson three to force overtime. And we all know how the story ends from there.
But this doesn’t take away from the fact that this was one of the most thrilling Jazz games all year. The defense was on point. All the starters finished in double figures. The defending champs and best regular season team was on the ropes! And the Jazz showed a glimmer of just what we can expect them to be. Yet in the end, the lack of experience was exposed.
Just imagine, had the Jazz taken care of business it would have put them a game above .500, likely spoiled the Warriors record-setting regular season, landed them in a playoffs and we could have had at least four more games of this thrilling match-up.
But, alas, the Jazz fell short. At least we got one heck of an exciting game out of it.
Next: No. 9