Donovan Mitchell scored 24 points and backup center Hassan Whiteside contributed 15 points and 18 rebounds to lead the Utah Jazz past the Orlando Magic 114-99 on Friday night in Salt Lake City for their fifth consecutive win.
Jordan Clarkson added 18 points for the Jazz, who exploded for 70 points in the second half. Royce O’Neale chipped in with 14 points, five assists and four steals, and Udoka Azubuike totaled 12 points and seven rebounds.
Wendell Carter Jr. scored 22 and grabbed nine rebounds for Orlando, which fell to 1-1 on its four-game road trip and lost for the third time in four games.
Cole Anthony had 18 points, six rebounds and five assists but also committed seven turnovers, and Mo Bamba notched 16 points and eight boards in the loss.
Mitchell, who also grabbed seven rebounds, scored nine straight points and 11 overall during a 17-point run in the first quarter for a 24-7 lead.
Orlando, which only scored 12 in the opening period, closed the gap to five with the final seven points of the half. Utah was limited to 16 points in the second quarter but still led by the lower-than-usual score of 44-39 heading into the break.
Both offenses clicked in the third quarter.
Carter helped the Magic trim the Jazz lead to 77-74 with 11 points in the period, while O’Neale boosted Utah with three 3-pointers. Orlando outscored the Jazz 35-33 in the quarter.
Utah dominated the fourth. O’Neale and Clarkson hit 3-pointers midway through the quarter to push the Jazz ahead by 12 points, and Utah cruised to the victory from there with 37 points in the period.
Rudy Gobert (calf) and Rudy Gay (knee) were sidelined again for Utah. Nickeil Alexander-Walker made his Jazz debut, playing just one minute with zero stats, after being acquired in a three-way trade earlier in the week.
–Field Level Media
