The Oklahoma City Thunder sweep the season series against the Utah Jazz, winning 98-89 in Salt Lake City.
Dennis Schroder came off the bench with 24 points and seven rebounds, while Russell Westbrook added 23 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists. Paul George was held to just 14 points and 11 rebounds on 2-of-8 shooting.
With their third loss from their past four games, the Jazz slide down from sixth to the eighth seed in the Western Conference, falling behind the San Antonio Spurs and Los Angeles Clippers, while the Thunder sit fourth, just one game back of the Houston Rockets.
After a tight first quarter, the Thunder blew the game open in the second, holding the Jazz to just 16 points as Donovan Mitchell and co struggled to find their offensive rhythm, shooting just 33% from the field through the first 24 minutes.
OKC used a 10-0 run to take an 11-point lead, thanks to buckets from Steven Adams and Terrance Ferguson, with Westbrook's free throws capping off the run.
After trailing by 16 points at the half, the Jazz emerged with a renewed energy, cutting the lead to just five points midway through the period, thanks to eight points from Rudy Gobert and a pair of three-pointers from Donovan Mitchell.
Just when the Jazz looked to be back in the game, trailing 56-51, Dennis Schroder took over, scoring 11 of his game-high 24 points over the final 5:51 of the quarter.
Though the Jazz weren't done there, mounting another comeback in the fourth quarter, with Mitchell producing the highlight of the game in the process, dropping Nerlens Noel with this ankle breaker.
skkkkkkkkrt pic.twitter.com/EIebuoktMj
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 12, 2019
Two quick three-pointers from Royne O'Neale cut the lead to 89-83, then it was Westbrook's turn to take over, scoring two quick buckets in a 9-1 run from the Thunder to put the game to bed.
While the Thunder's defence deserves plenty of credit, the Jazz made life hard for themselves, connecting on just 36.4% of their shots, including 13-of-43 from downtown.
Donovan Mitchell led the Jazz with 25 points on 8-of-22 shooting, while O'Neale added 17 points and eight rebounds. Rudy Gobert finished 15 points and 12 rebounds.
Aussie Dante Exum made his return to the lineup after a 26-game absence due to an ankle injury, logging 15 minutes on court.
