Thunder 134 - 129 Jazz summary, stats, scores and highlights | NBA

Up by four with just over a minute left in the game, the Thunder needed a big bucket so of course they went to their star and the fourth leading score in the league, SGA who was right on his average of 31 points and put the nail in the coffin with this turn around jumper from the top of the key. 

Each of the Thunder's starting five had 15 or more points including Carson Wallace who had 16 and hit this big three that, for a moment, looked like it was going to be the end of the Jazz, but the home team came clawing back in the final minutes. 

If it's not SGA, it's Williams. If it's not Williams it's Giddey. And if it's not Giddey it's Holmgren. This team has weapons all over the court and that's what makes them so dangerous. Holmgren had 15 points, 5 rebounds, 5 assists and 4 blocks. 

The one time 19 point lead was cut to just 1 at the end of the third quarter, but SGA's buzzer beater to end the quarter put OKC back up 3 and the Thunder kept Utah at an arms distance the rest of the way. 

Giddey had himself a nice game, posting 20 points, 10 rebounds and 6 rebounds. He can made it looks so easy at times as it seems like he's playing in slow motion, but the Aussie knows how to set his teammates for spectacular dunks like this one from Jalen Willams who had 27 and 8. 

This is a young team that has plenty of talent up and down their roster, but plays like this tells you they aren't just a bunch of studs stacked on a team. They are unit who pass the ball, move with out the ball, hit the open man and have mastered how to get easy shots. 

OKC jumped out to a 19 point lead, but the Jazz would chip away at that advantage. While they came close, they could never take the lead because plays like this made it so hard to get a stop. 

We know how good SGA is, but Jalen Willams might be the key to the Thunder's success this year. He is the perfect complimentary scorer that can create his own shot, defend on the other end and throw it down when he needs to. Williams had 27 on the night just a game after leading the Thunder in scoring in LA against the Clippers. 

The OKC Thunder got a big win in Utah over a Jazz team that hadn't lost at home in their last nine games. Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led all scorers with 31 points on 8/15 shooting and 15/17 at the line.

The Jazz came into tonight on a couple extra nights rest but if was OKC who came out looking much more fresh. They were forcing tough shots and Josh Giddey helped push the ball early on. He found Holmgren for one of his 6 assists of the first half. 

Holmgren goes to the line and he hits one of two as the shot clock hits 0:00

The ball stays with Utah with 12.3 left and Fontcchio had a chance for a three, Clarkson got the rebound and missed the mid range jumper and that's going to do it!. 

Kessler's dunk attempt was blocked by Holmgren and they are going to replay to see who this went off last. 

Sexton draws an offensive foul and they will get it with 20 left on the clock!

Clarkson with a spot up three ball from the top of the key and the Jazz are still in this game!

Wallace silences this crowd with a three ball from the top of the key!

Sexton streaking to the rack for the tomahawk slam and he's over 30 on the night!

SGA lets a pull up go off the spin move on the perimeter with the shot clock winding down and drills it!

Sexton to the line after the foul on SGA and he hits the first of two but gets his own rebound and and gets fouled by J. Williams. he goes to the line and hits another two FTs. 

1:27 left on the clock, Utah need a stop. 

SGA draws the foul on Sexton with the pump fake and he hits both FTs with under 2:00 to go. 

Kessler from the line after the foul on Holmgren and he hits one of two FTs. 

SGA goes behind the back and pulls up from the elbow for the mid range jumper to take the air out of this crowd at Delta Center. 

Markkanen cutting to the rim and Fontecchio found him for the dunk!

Sexton using the euro step to the iron and gets the lay up to drop. 

Timeout Thunder with 3:17 to go in the final quarter. 

Markkanen to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Wiggins. 

Wallace drills the three ball in the corner and that might just do it! 

Tiimeout Jazz with 4:04 to go in the 4th. 

Markkanen to the line after the foul on J. Williams and he hits one of two FTs.  

SGA finds J. Williams along the perimeter and he drains the uncontested three!

Markkanen to the line after the foul on K. Williams and he hits both FTs. 

Olynyk with the steal at mid court and he finds Sexton cherry picking for the easy transition slam!

TImeout OKC with 5:29 to go in the 4th. 

Step back fader off the glass from right outside the lane from Markkenen. 

K. Williams with the three ball from the top of the key. 

Sexton to the line after the foul after Wallace and he hits one of two FTs. 

Dump off from Markkanen and he finds Kessler for the reverse lay up. 

Walliams hits the mid range jumper and he's got 24 on the night!

Clarkson follows up the missed floater with a tip in. 

Williams snags the rebound on one end, dribbles all the way to the three point line and jacks the three on the other end! 

Timeout Jazz with 8:47 to go.

Williams going to the line after Collins fouled him on the transition slam attempt. He hits one of two at the line. 

Micic on the drive and finish after the pump fake to the corner. 

Clarkson finds Olynyk steaking to the lane and he gets the lay up and the foul! FT is good for the three point play!

Micic at the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Collins. 

Collins answers back with a short floater close to the bucket. 

Giddey with the spot up jumper from the elbow off the dish from Holmgren. 

Willams pull up from the FT line and hits the mid range jumper. 

Collins backing in on Holmgren and he gets the floater while hanging in the air. 

Olynyk gets called for a take foul and Giddey makes the FT. OKC get the ball back and Williams finds Holmgren on the alley oop slam!

SGA splits up double team and pulls up from inside the FT line for the final points of the 3rd quarter. 

We are off to the final 12 minutes of play here from SLC, and this one might come down to the wire!

SGA send Markkanen to the line and he hits both FTs with under a minute to go in the third quarter. 

Wiggins to the line after the foul on Fontecchio and he hits both FTs. 

Holmgren stuffed Markkane's dunk but Fontecchio followed it up with a jam!

Joe drills the three ball in the corner to put the Thunder back in the lead!

Kessler ties the game up on a put back off the Clarkson missed lay up. 

Timeout Thunder with 3:37 to go in the 3rd quarter!

Markkanen to the line after the foul on J. Willliams and he hits both FTs. 

Sexton answers back with a three ball of his own to cut the lead back to 4!

Williams on the step back on the baseline and he hits the long ball!

Fontecchio in the corner and he drills the three ball to cut the lead to four points!

SGA back to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Sexton. 

Sexton drills the three ball with the shot clock winding down after Dunn got his shot blocked, regained it and dished it out. 

Williams gets into the lane and he finds Giddey underneath the iron for the lay up. 

TImeout Jazz with 7:02 to go in the third quarter. 

Giddey hits the lay up and gets the foul! He hits the FT after the Collins foul for the three point play. 

Collins slashing to the rack and he double clutches in traffic and finishes off the glass. 

SGA spins his way to the paint and lays it up and in off the glass. 

Collins missed the three ball in the corner but Markkanen was there from the tip in. 

Lob over the top for Markkanen and he finishes the alley oop off the pass from Sexton. 

Sexton takes Holmgren off the dribble and hits the lay up on a tough angle. 

SGA goingn back to the line after the foul on Dunn and he hits one of two FTs. 

Fontecchio drills the spot up three ball from the corner!

SGA going to the line to start the second half and he hits both FTs after the foul on Collins. 

WE ARE BACK IN SALT LAKE CITY FOR THE SECOND HALF OF ACTION!!!

The THunder would stretch the lead back up to 9 before the half thanks to 12 second quarter points from Chet Holmgren and this big time slam from Jalen Williams

The lead was cut to as many as 3 at one points thanks to Sexton and Collins who had 15 and 13 respectively. 

Markkanen had just 3 points in the first half but he made sure he would get his looks in the second, even if it meant he had to force it. He's got 9 points on just 5 field goals. He's got to be a bit more involved in the second half. 

Jordan Clarkson came off the bench and helped reduce the 19 point lead in the first quarter and led his team into the second quarter with 13 points. 

Utah were a little sloppy with the ball early on and that led to some easy transition buckets courtesy of Jalen Williams. The lead jumped up to 19 early on and this game looked like it was going to be a blow out for a short period. 

The Jazz came into tonight on a couple extra nights rest but if was OKC who came out fresher. They were forcing tough shots and Giddey helped push the ball early on. He found Holmgren for one of his 6 assists of the first half. 

WE ARE HEADING TO HALFTIME HERE FROM UTAH!

SGA and the Thunder got off to a hot start, jumping up by 19 but the Jazz came clawing back. Still plenty to play for here from Salt Lake City. 

Holmgreen was wide open from the top of the key and he drills the three ball! He's got 12 in the half!

Sexton to the line after the Williams foul and he hits one of two FTs. 

Wallace with the offensive board and the slip pass back to Williams who soared for the slam!

Fontecchio to the line after the foul on Wallace ad he hits both FTs. 

Collins answers back with a three ball from the corner of his own and the lead is back to double digits. 

Giddey drills the three ball from the corner off the SGA assist. 

SGA to the line after the foul on Sexton and he hits both FTs. 

SGA with the drive on the left side and the lay up with the right. 

Lay off from Sexton to Collins who slams it with two hands. 

SGA to the line after the foul on Sexton and he hits both FTs. Those are his first points of the second quarter. 

Collins to the line after Giddey's foul and he hits both FTs. 

Markannen hits a FT after a defensive three seconds call. 

Markkanen with the three ball from the top of the key and the Jazz have cut the lead from 19 to 6!

Timeout Thunder with 3:15 to go in the second quarter!

Collins at the line after the foul on Giddey and he hits both FTs. 

Markkanen distributing from down low and he finds Clarkson in the corner for three!

Giddey gets the rebound on one end and euro steps his way to the lane on the other for the lay up. 

Markkanen gets the entry pass and goes into the body of a defender, getting the bucket and the foul! FT is no good. 

Giddey takinig it himself this time, with a pull up off the glass from the wing. 

Sexton drills a three ball from the top of the key after Markkanedn found him open up top. 

Wallace with the lay up at the iron and it was Giddey on the dish again. 

Williams on the slash and the slam after Giddey found him in stride. 

Sexton at the line and he hits both FTs after the Wiggins foul. 

Lay up for Willams off the dump off from Holmgren in the lane. 

Micic with the short range effort and the Jazz are going to take a timeout with 7:24 to go in the first half. 

Clarkson drills the three ball from the top of the key and we have a single digit game!

Williams is on a roll, he drops a mid range jumper and it was Kenrich Williams who found him coming off the screen. 

Sexton lets fly from the top of the key and his three ball is money!

Williams with a back cut to the lane and he put it up off the glass for the lay in. 

Kessler following up the miss from Sexton with a tip in for hi first point of the night. 

Micic with the dump off for SGA down low and he gets the reverse to fall. 

Agbaji at the line after the Holmgren foul and he hits one of two FTs. 

Williams back into the paint and this time he finishes with the floater. 

Sexton with the drive and the lay up off the dish from Clarkson. 

SGA left his feet in the paint and found Williams at the top of the key for the three ball!

Agbaji with the steal and the score with the AND 1 to go along on the first play of the 2nd quarter. 

We are at the end of the first quarter! The Thunder led by as many as 19 thanks to 10 from SGA, and 9 from Holmgren. 

Collins leads the Jazz with 6 while Sexton has 2 and Markkanen has 3. 

Clarkson shaking off the contact and hits the floater in the lane, AND 1!

 FT is good to complete the three point play. 

Holmgren in the paint and he hits the push floater. 

Olynyk dives to the iron and George found him for the lay up on the up and under. 

Clarkson wiggles into the lane and hits the floater over Holmgren. 

Holmgreen drops the three from the top of the key after the kick out from Waters. 

George was wide open in the corner and Agbaji hit him for the triple try!

Timeout Thunder with 3:11 to go in the first quarter. 

Dup off from Clarkson to Olynyk and he gets the lay up to go. 

SGA at the line and he hits both after the foul on Agbaji. 

Right off the bench, Joe drops the three ball from the wing and the Thunder are running away with this game.

Right off the bench, Joe drops the three ball from the wing and the Thunder are running away with this game. 

Clarkson turned it over and Wallace takes it for the steal and the score. 

Wallace drops the three ball from the corner after Giddey found him. 

Giddey penetrates into the lane, hangs and hits the runner. 

Clarkson pulls up from the elbow and drills the mid range jumper. 

SGA at the line and he hits one of two after the foul on Dunn. 

Collins backing down the defender and he hits the turnaround from the paint. 

Williams on the drive and he lays it up and in. 

Lob over the top for Dunn and Fotecchio gets the slam on the alley oop 

SGA with the fader in the lane and he gets the roll. 

Wallace drops the three from the top of the key out of the timeout. 

Giddey running the break and he finds Holmgreen on the entry pass for a transition lay up. 

Timeout Jazz four minutes into this game. 

Wallace gets the defensive rebound and goes coast to coast with the lay up. 

Collins to the line after the foul on `SGA and he hits both FTs. 

SGA found Holmgreen down low and he gets the easy bucket under the iron. 

Sexton on the penetration and he kicks it out to Markkanen who drops the corner three. 

SGA going back to work down low, hitting the turn around on the block and getting the foul! FT is good. 

Collins with a spin move on the block and drops the tough shot in traffic. 

Giddey gets offensive board and puts it up quickly getting the bucket and the foul! FT is good. 

Sexton gets on the board with a floater in the lane, remember he's coming off a 30 point game. 

SGA opens up the scoring with a step back jumper from the elbow. 

WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM THE DELTA CENTER!!!

Tonight's odds 

The Jazz might have won seven straight games coming into tonight but the Thunder are 3 point favorites with he Over/Under set at 246.5. 

I like the Thunder tonight. They are a great team and the Jazz's run has to come to an end at sometime. It's going to be close but I think OKC's firepower finishes the game out in the fourth and they snap the Jazz streak. 

OKC win 124-118.

What the West looks like 

Taking a look at the Western Conference standings we see the Thunder tied with the Thunder sitting right under Minnesota for the best record in the West. They are two games behind the T’Wolves, and while it might be exciting to see those teams at the top so soon it shouldn’t be a surprise. Both of those teams have been building a base for a long standing challenger in the West. If these teams can hold strong until the end of the season remains to be seen but they have had fantastic starts to the season. The Jazz are still sitting in Play-In position but they are quickly rising, and if this team stays together they could aim for a direct playoff spot. 

And all that Jazz

If you aren’t familiar with the this resurgent Jazz team, you should get to know them because they are finally putting all of the pieces together and are likely to be around once the postseason comes closer. They are led by the “Finnisher” Lauri Markkanen, who is pacing his side at 24 points a game, but the way Jordan Clarkson and Colin Sexton are playing lately has propelled this team to their 9-1 stretch over the last 10 games. Clarkson posts 18 points and 5.2 assists, which has earned him some admirers in the trade block but the Jazz are going to try to hold on to him if they can’t get a deal that would be worth dealing him. Collin Sexton is getting 17 points and a game and is finding his rhythm after missing a handful of games in December. 

SGA in MVP race

SGA is coming off a one of his lowest scoring games of the season. He is the star of this young Thunder side, and he has been not just the best player on his team but one of the best players in the league. He is averaging 31 ppg which is fourth in the league behind only Embiid, Doncic and Giannis. He is also dishing 6.3 assists a game which is getting some of his younger teammates like Jalen Williams and Chet Holmgren open shots. Tonight’s as all nights OKC’s opponents will have him in their crosshairs all four quarter. 

Thunder last game

Oklahoma City went to LA for a showdown with the LA Clippers who are looking more and more dangerous as their squad full of stars to figure out how to play with each other. They kept it tight with the Clips all game despite just 19 points from Shai Gilgeous-Alexander thanks to Jalen Williams who had 25 points. Oklahoma City had just two leads all game, one that came late in the first quarter and the second with a one point advantage with 3:37 left. Paul George had a season high 38, 18 of those coming in a fourth quarter that the Clips ended on a 14-2 run. 

Jazz last game

The Jazz’s last game was postponed after the tragic passing of Golden State Warriors assistant coach Dejan Milojevic. Before that game they played the Indiana Pacers who were without Tyrese Haliburton for yet another game. Utah led from wire to wire as they stretched the lead to 15 before the half. That lead would climb up to 29 points as Lauri Markkanen put up 32 and grabbed 10 rebounds while Colin Sexton chipped in another 30 in the 27 point win from Salt Lake City. 

We are live from Utah

Hello everyone and welcome to Salt Lake City where the Jazz have enjoyed the comforts of home over the last week and a half. They won their last five games at the Delta Center, seven overall and nine of their last ten to climb up the Western Conference standings to the Play-In spots. The Oklahoma City Thunder are finally seeing their young crop of players start to show their potential and have looked like one of the best teams in the league. They come into tonight just a couple games behind the Minnesota Timberwolves for the best record in the West. Tonight the Jazz look to get one last win at home against a top team before leaving Salt Lake City for a two week road trip.

Thunder vs. Jazz 

We have the hottest team in the league back at home for their sixth straight home game, ready to take on the second placed team in the west for a conference showdown that could be a playoff matchup in a few months time. The Utah Jazz will host the Oklahoma City Thunder and AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s game from the Delta Center.