The Lakers exhibited some energy to start the game. Wesley Johnson started his first posession attacking the basket. He found Jordan Hill, who got fouled and was sent to the free throw line. The early minutes of the first quarter were devoted to getting Jordan Hill open looks.
He had a few shots around the paint, but ended up with free throw attempts. His mid-range game was non-existent.
The Lakers came out and crashed the boards early. While the Utah Jazz shot 4 of 5 from the field, the Lakers had 6 extra shot attempts, making just 3 of 11 from the field.
Ronnie Price had his mind made up about how bad he wanted this win. He showed some hustle. He pressed Dante Exum and dove onto the floor to try to get possession. On a Utah Jazz fast break, he sprinted hard and went up to swat the basketball, only to end up as a goaltending call. At least he was able to draw a charge on a two-on-one against. That play was impressive.
Utah began to pull away midway through the first. What started as a near tie, ended up 32-20 at the end of the first quarter. Utah shot 65% from the field.
The second quarter was just as bad. Julius Randle tried to force plays on offense with no success. Kobe Bryant was substituted back into the to add offensive spark. Both he and Boozer have a connection going on. Kobe found him on a reverse pass for a layup. He found Boozer again cutting across the lane for a 5′ hook shot.
However, the offense was based around Kobe Bryant‘s creativity. Whether it was a tough 27′ made 3-point shot, any kind of fadeaway shot from the perimeter, or his textbook upfake to draw and a foul from 15′, it was all on him. Wayne Ellington and Ronnie Price both struggled to create shots. The entire team did altogether.
Utah had their rhythm on both ends of the floor. Rudy Gobert affected any shot in the painted area. Exum and Burks kept breaking down the Laker defense.
At the half, the Lakers were down, 54-38. The Utah Jazz doubled the Lakers’ points in the paint, 32-16. Kobe Bryant led all scorers with 15 points.
The second half was a complete 180* turn. We finally saw Byron Scott’s philosophy in a winning manner.
The third quarter started with a 15′ baseline jumper by Jordan Hill. Boozer hit a 16′ fadeaway from straight away. Kobe added a three pointer to cut the lead from 16 points, to 9 points. Ronnie Price maintained his tremendous effort on defense throughout the game. He stole the basketball on a transition defense opportunity.
The Laker defense had held their own since the end of the second quarter. The Utah Jazz had just one field goal since the 3:00 mark of the second quarter. Their field goal percentage dropped below 50% as a team.
Momentum swung in the Lakers favor, as the team continued with a 19-3 run in the third quarter. Carlos Boozer scored 10 points in the third. The Utah Jazz had coughed up the basketball, to the tune of seven turnovers in the third quarter alone. At the end of the quarter, the score was 72-69, barely in Utah’s favor.
Ronnie Price drew three charges and continued to shoot the gaps on drop-off passes. Every loose ball was dived on. He looked like a defensive captain for the Lakers tonight.
Julius Randle stole the show a bit in the fourth quarter. He hit three mid-range jumpshots from 19′ out. He used that ability to sell an upfake and get to the basket as well. Defensively, he added three more blocks on layup attempts at the rim. Instead of forcing the issue, Randle saw the play coming and exploded up to reach for the basketball. It was the best two-way quarter of his short preseason career.
The Lakers as a unit worked the points in the paint. Utah had doubled them up 32-16 in the first half. The Lakers had nearly tripled Utah, 26-10 late in the fourth quarter.
Alec Burks continued to attack the basket, but the turnaround in the third quarter was too much. The Jazz finished with 28 turnovers for the entire game. Though the Lakers shot just 40% from the field compared to 48.5% to the Utah Jazz, the team as a whole collected 17 steals; 6 by Carlos Boozer and 4 by Ronnie Price.
Kobe Bryant led the team with 26 points on 7 of 22 shooting from the field. Carlos Boozer added 19 points on 7 of 14 shooting. Ronnie Price chipped in with 6 points and 10 assists with just 3 turnovers.