Rudy Gobert scored five of his 22 points late in overtime and hauled in 21 rebounds to help the Utah Jazz escape with a 121-115 win over the Memphis Grizzlies on Tuesday night in Salt Lake City.
The Jazz’s win combined with the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 132-114 loss to the Washington Wizards allowed Utah to clinch no worse than the sixth seed in the Western Conference playoffs. Utah (47-32) currently holds a half-game lead for the No. 5 spot over the Denver Nuggets (47-33).
Jordan Clarkson also scored 22, Donovan Mitchell chipped in 20 despite a 6-for-24 shooting night and Hassan Whiteside contributed 14 points and 10 rebounds as the Jazz won for just the second time in the past eight games.
Jaren Jackson Jr. led Memphis (55-24) with 28 points. He hit three 3-pointers in the final 2 1/2 minutes of regulation, but the Grizzlies saw their seven-game winning streak end. Tyus Jones scored 24 points and Desmond Bane added 23 for Memphis, which is locked into the No. 2 spot out West.
Both teams had double-digit leads at various points. The Jazz, who have struggled to close out teams after taking big leads, coughed up a nine-point advantage they held midway through the fourth quarter to require overtime redemption.
The Jazz jumped out to a 13-3 edge and were ahead 30-19 when the Grizzlies began chipping away at the deficit. Memphis used its own 13-3 surge to tighten things up. The teams went into halftime tied at 50-50.
Bane scored 12 quick points in the third quarter during a 18-7 run that helped the Grizzlies take an 11-point lead.
Utah stormed back to reclaim the lead at 82-78, and the score was tied again 83-83 at the end of the quarter.
Danuel House Jr. helped the Jazz seize control by opening the fourth with a four-point play and an alley-top dunk as part of an 8-0 run for a 91-83 lead.
The Grizzlies weren’t done, though. Jackson’s late trio of 3-pointers included a step-back shot that brought Memphis within 109-108 with 33 seconds remaining.
Jones missed a layup and Mitchell made 1 of 2 free throws, giving the Grizzlies the ball with 5.6 seconds to go. After a missed 3-point attempt by Bane, Anderson forced overtime by grabbing the rebound and hitting a buzzer-beater.
–Field Level Media