Utah Jazz find defensive rhythm in win vs Orlando Magic

Even without Derrick Favors the Utah Jazz were able to dominate defensively and defeat the Orlando Magic, 94-80.

In a game the Utah Jazz were heavily favored to win, the Orlando Magic came out swinging. The Jazz got off to a nice start, scoring nine unanswered points before allowing a score by the Magic. However, the Magic were able to come alive with their 3-point shooting early in the game.

Despite that, as well as an 8-0 Magic run to cut Utah’s lead to five late in the third quarter, the Jazz hung on for a double-digit win over the Magic.

Strong defense

What brought the Jazz back and allowed them to pull away in this win was their defense. They were able to force 14 turnovers and only allowed the Magic to shoot 34 percent from the field overall.

Guys like Rudy Gobert and Ekpe Udoh really made a difference when the Magic tried scoring in the paint as they were altering most shots, and came away with five total blocks between the two of them.

Rudy GOATbert

Gobert had a monster game, as he finished with 21 points and 17 rebounds. The Jazz were plus-22 when he was on the floor. To say he was impactful is an understatement.

Since Gobert has returned to the lineup, the Jazz are 16-4, with his stat line being: 14.9 points, 11 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game. He has been the key to the recent success of the Jazz.

It makes me think — where would the Jazz be in the standings if Gobert wouldn’t have missed two months to injury?

But, enough of the what-ifs. The fact of the matter is that the Jazz play best when their defense is in a groove. And Gobert is a big piece of that defense.

The saying “defense leads to offense” is true when it comes to the Jazz. Offensively, the Jazz were also impressive as they were able to shoot 49 percent overall, while knocking down 10 3-point shots.

Starters lead by example

The Jazz starters carried the offense tonight, with all five starters scoring in the double digits, while the bench scored a total of 12 measly points. Jonas Jerebko started in place of the injured Derrick Favors and had a nice night scoring 12 points and hitting 3-of-5 shots from 3-point range.

The absence of Favors was something I was worried about, considering the best player on the Magic is their power forward, Aaron Gordon. But Jerebko and guys like Jae Crowder and Udoh held Gordon in check as he was only able to make four of his 18 field goal attempts.

Top play of the game

Jazz rookie Donovan Mitchell had an incredible play early on in the first quarter where he, well, let’s just take a watch rather than me trying to explain it —

Stat of the game

The Jazz were also dominant on the glass tonight as they gathered 48 total rebounds, out-rebounding the Magic by 12.

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Player of the game

This is easy — Rudy Gobert. As I mentioned earlier, Gobert put up big numbers, scoring 21 points and hauling in 17 rebounds in addition to his two blocks. Something that doesn’t always show up on paper is his ability to protect the paint and alter shots. He is a one of the biggest defensive difference-makers in the league right now, if not THE biggest.

Up Next

Overall this was a great win for the Jazz as they regain their confidence on the defensive end of the court, and begin their week with a W.

The Jazz will head to Indiana to play the Pacers on Wednesday, where they hope to ride this wave of momentum and stay alive in the playoff race.