Game 11 Recap: Hot-shooting Warriors blow past Jazz, 102-88

The Utah Jazz mustered only 13 points in the first quarter en route to a 102-88 loss to the Golden State Warriors on Saturday night in Oakland.

A stronger second-half effort, which saw the Jazz cut the Golden State lead to seven in the third quarter, wasn't enough to overcome the Warriors' 51 % field-goal shooting as six Warriors scored in double figures.

The Jazz went more than six minutes without a field goal in the first quarter as the Warriors open up a 19-6 lead on a variety of post scoring from David Lee and Andrew Bogut and outside shooting from Andre Iguodala and Klay Thompson.

Eight straight points in the second quarter from Marvin Williams prevented the game from getting too far out of hand, and Gordon Hayward and Richard Jefferson kept the Jazz within striking distance in the third, closing the Golden State lead to 65-58 with 2:47 left in the third. But the Jazz would get no closer, as consistent scoring from the Warriors' starters put the game out of reach.

Klay Thompson led all scorers with 25 points for the Warriors. Derrick Favors led the Jazz with 17 points and seven rebounds.

The Jazz fell to 1-10 on the season, while the Warriors improved to 7-3.

Three Positives

• John Lucas III played surprisingly well in his 25 minutes, scoring seven points on 3-3 shooting with four assists. He also took two charges in the third quarter that were instrumental in the Jazz run that closed Golden State's lead. He played smartly within the offense, avoiding the poor shot selection and inconsistent passing we've seen from him so far this year. And he hit the only three-pointer he took. More this, less IIIOLO, please.
• Aside from the dismal first quarter, the Jazz got balanced scoring from its starters; all five scored at least eight points and three of the five scored 12 or more. Richard Jefferson had an especially strong showing against his former team with 12 points, five assists, two rebounds, a steal and a block.
• Marvin Williams continues to impress since his return from injury. He began the game wearing a mask to protect his injured nose, but he quickly discarded it and proceeded to shoot 5-9 from the field and 3-5 on three-pointers. Along with Hayward, he has become the Jazz's most consistent outside shooting threat. He also showed flashes of the "Angry Marvin" that helped the Jazz fend off the Pelicans last Wednesday. I like Angry Marvin.

Three Negatives

• That first quarter. Hoo, boy. What dismal-looking offensive possessions -- utterly stagnant, little movement, careless turnovers, long and inaccurate jumpers. Just bad all around. While the starters ended up with decent, balanced stat lines, they still shot far too many long two-pointers as a unit.
• This performance underscores this team's need for a real point guard. Alec Burks tried gamely, and had four assists (with two turnovers), but Diante Garrett was a disappointing 1-6 from the field with just one assist. We can only hope that Trey Burke can do better than this when he returns, but I'm afraid he'll have a sizable learning curve himself.
• The Jazz were thoroughly beaten on the boards, 42-32, and Enes Kanter and Derrick Favors often looked overmatched trying to guard Andrew Bogut, David Lee and even Jermaine O'Neal (who played rather well before leaving the game with an injury). Rudy Gobert continues to look extremely raw, grabbing three rebounds but fumbling several offensive possessions away and missing two free throws.

The Jazz now return to SLC for a Monday matchup with these same Warriors. See you then.