Utah Jazz get a wake-up call in finale, lose out on No. 3 seed

After a disappointing 102-93 loss to the Portland Trail Blazers, the Utah Jazz miss out on the West’s third seed and home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. What happened and what does it mean for the Jazz?

Coming into Thursday’s matchup with the Portland Trail Blazers, the Utah Jazz had the ability to not only secure the Western Conference’s third seed, but to win their second outright division title in as many years.

After dismantling Golden State by 40 points the night before, Utah looked primed to repeat as division champions and claim home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs. However, Damian Lillard and Co. clearly had something to say about that.

What happened?

Coming into the game, both teams appeared to be heading in opposite directions. Utah had won six straight games ahead of the regular season finale, while Portland was riding a four-game losing streak.

After blowing out the defending champs on Tuesday night, all signs pointed to the Jazz ending the season on a high note with a big win in PDX. The Trail Blazers, however, didn’t seem to get the memo.

While Portland had already clinched home-court advantage in their first-round series, they came ready to play from the game’s tip. The Trail Blazers opened the game on an 8-2 run led by six quick points from Lillard.

The hot shooting continued as the Blazers took a 17-9 lead after the first six minutes of play. Utah chased that deficit all night.

After shooting just 33 percent from the field in the game’s opening period, the Jazz found themselves down by seven entering the second quarter.

Mitchell also fell victim to Utah’s cold shooting, missing his first eight attempts from the field. He didn’t get his first field goal until three minutes before halftime. The rookie finished the half with nine points on just 3-of-13 shooting.

Lillard, on the other hand, had no problem finding the bottom of the net. The Weber State product had 19 points at the break, while fellow backcourt star, C.J. McCollum added 14 of his own.

If Utah was to claim home-court advantage, they would have to overcome a 14-point halftime deficit on the road.

After adding another eight points to his total, Lillard led the Blazers to an 80-59 lead after three quarters.

A 13-0 Jazz run in the fourth quarter brought Portland’s lead back to within 11 with just under eight minutes to play. Utah, however, couldn’t find an answer for #DameTime.

Despite an eight-point quarter from Mitchell and a couple of impressive runs, Utah had dug itself too big of hole to get out of. Lillard scored a game-high 36 points to go along with 10 assists in leading his team to the Northwest Division championship and the third seed.

While Lillard was seemingly unstoppable offensively at times tonight, the Jazz never seemed to get into the flow of the game. Utah’s trademark tenacious defense didn’t seem to travel with the team after Tuesday’s big win over the Warriors.

FIngers crossed Thursday’s loss will serve as a much-needed wake-up call for the Jazz heading into the playoffs.

What does it mean for the Jazz?

As I mentioned above, Utah’s loss not only meant they lost out on the third seed and repeating as division champs, but it also meant that they would have to travel for the first two games of their first-round playoff matchup.

That first-round matchup will be against Russell Westbrook and the fourth-seed Oklahoma City Thunder.

Missing out on the third seed also means that Utah will most likely have to face Houston in the second round of the playoffs if they advance. A win over the Blazers would have ensured that they wouldn’t meet the Rockets until the Western Conference Finals.

Of course, winning a playoff series at all will be a challenge.

What’s next?

The NBA playoffs begin this Saturday.

The Jazz will enter postseason play as the West’s fifth seed for the second year in a row. That fact alone shows just how impressive this season has been for the Jazz given their circumstances.

While I originally pegged OKC as one of Utah’s worst potential matchups, I wouldn’t ever count out Quin Snyder and this Jazz squad.

The Thunder, while not living up to lofty preseason expectations, have given Utah trouble this season. While we might not be able to take much away from their four matchups this season against the Jazz (OKC won head-to-head 3-1), they will certainly pose a threat to Utah’s hopes of advancing to the second round for two straight years.

Westbrook, fresh off averaging a triple-double for the second straight year, will present challenges to Utah’s elite-level defense. I believe, however, Coach Snyder will have his team ready for Westbrook and the Oklahoma City squad.

Should be a fun first round. Can’t wait to see how it all plays out. #TakeNote

Next: Utah Jazz: Examining a first-round date with the Thunder

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