Jazz take control of Game 5 and the Clippers: 3 takeaways

The Jazz defeated the Clippers 96-92 in the Staples Center on Tuesday night. They gain a 3-2 advantage with the win, as the series heads back to Utah.

Utah didn’t win pretty, but they did what they needed to do. Utah took control of the game in the second quarter and slowed the game to their pace until the fourth quarter, where they managed to close the victory out. Gordon Hayward returned from the food poisoning illness that prevented him from finishing Game 4 and played well. He lead the Jazz with 27 points and five other Utah players scored in double-digits.

Los Angeles played poor offensive basketball for most of the game. No Clipper managed to score in double-digits in the first half and they only managed 58 points through three quarters. The Clippers pushed the tempo of the game in the fourth quarter and reaped the benefits. Their 34 point fourth quarter was led Chris Paul and J.J. Redick. The duo finished the game with 28 and 26 points, respectively. DeAndre Jordan was the only other teammate to finish in double-digit scoring.

Takeaways

J.J. Redick broke his slump: Redick has undeniably been in a slump during this series. He was averaging 7.8 points per game on 34.4 percent shooting through the first four games. Those numbers both paled to his season numbers of 15.0 points on 44.5 percent shooting. With Blake Griffin out and the Clippers’ season on the line, his shooting had fallen off just when his team needed him most.

Just as Jamal Crawford stepped up during Game 4, Redick stepped up tonight. He scored 26 points on 7-of-12 shooting, including 14 points in the fourth quarter to help bring the Clippers back. Redick helped develop confidence early by driving to the basket with success. That confidence later paid dividends when he made two big late 3-pointers. Los Angeles will need more performances like this one in this series.

The Jazz struggled to find a second offensive option: A high-scoring fourth quarter allowed five members of the Jazz to finish with 10-16 points. Joe Johnson added 16 points and Rudy Gobert chipped in 11. George Hill closed the game with his free throws and scored 12 points. Boris Diaw was Utah’s second-leading scorer until late in the fourth quarter. Rodney Hood passed him at that point, and finished with 16 points, albeit on 6-17 shooting.

To close out this series, Utah needs someone to step up alongside Gordon Hayward. Hill did throughout the regular season, but has only delivered offensively in one game this series. He is slowed by a combination of injuries and Chris Paul’s defensive abilities. Joe Johnson was excellent in Utah’s two series wins, but didn’t stand out tonight with his 6-of-14 shooting. Rodney Hood delivered his strongest offensive output of the series, but is only shooting 38 percent against the Clippers. Utah would have won this game handily if any of these players had stepped up with a robust offensive performance.

Utah is in control: To recap this series: the Jazz took Game 1, the Clippers responded and took Games 2-3, and Utah has now taken Games 4-5. The Jazz have won each game that Rudy Gobert has played in during this series. (His 40 seconds in Game 1 count.) His return coincided with Blake Griffin’s departure in this matchup, and the momentum of the series has now fully changed hands. Utah now needs only need one more win to advance to round two.

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Additionally, Utah has controlled the tempo of play throughout much of this series. The stage is not too much for them; they play the same brand of basketball that got them to 51 wins in the first place. This Utah team at their current level of play is likely a better team than the Clippers minus Griffin, even with Paul playing great basketball. They play as if they know this and are confident. Utah will be back for Game 6 to attempt to close the series out on Friday.