What matters most is the Utah Jazz successfully stole homecourt advantage.
The Utah Jazz and the Dallas Mavericks kicked off the 2022 NBA Playoffs on Saturday in the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. From the tip-off, it was a tightly contested game.
Donovan Mitchell struggled early, shooting 1-for-9 from the field while scoring only two points in the entire first half.
Luckily for the Jazz, Bojan Bogdanovic was able to carry the early offensive load. With the smaller Jalen Brunson guarding him through several stretches of the game, Bogdanovic was able to take advantage and went into the locker room having scored 20 points and given Utah a two-point lead at the halfway point.
In the second half, Donovan Mitchell started to look like the Donovan Mitchell fans are used to seeing in the postseason. Aggressive as usual, he was able to put that abysmal first half behind him, scoring 19 points in the third quarter alone and finishing with a game-high 32 points.
Utah was able to build its lead to 12 in the second half. But the Mavericks kept it close with their aggressive play, which got them to the foul line 16 times in the fourth quarter alone.
Winning efforts from other Utah Jazz starters
In the end, it was an unsuspecting stepback three from Royce O’Neale that put the game out of reach and gave him his only points of the game. After 48 hard-fought minutes, the Jazz came out on top, 99-93.
Bojan Bogdanovic was just behind Donovan Mitchell in scoring for the game with his 26 points.
Meanwhile, Rudy Gobert only had one field goal attempt the whole game, but his impact cannot be overlooked. With Mavericks bigs Maxi Kleber and Dwight Powell providing very little offensive threat, Gobert was able to patrol the paint and alter shots. This is a big reason why it took Mavs guard Jalen Brunson 24 shots to score 24 points.
The Frenchman ended the game with five points, 17 rebounds, and three blocks.
Overall, the Utah Jazz got what they wanted: a Game 1 win on the road. They will look to build on this win by continuing their stellar defensive play, and by having Mitchell and Bogdanovic expose favorable matchups against Jalen Brunson and Davis Bertans.
The teams will be back in the American Airlines Center at 6:30 p.m. MT Monday.
It’s still unknown whether or not Mavs star Luka Doncic will be available. But for now, Utah leads the series, 1-0.
Stay tuned to The J-Notes for more Utah Jazz news and views.