"We Competed" | Utah Fights To The End In Emotional Loss To San Antonio

Before Utah tipped off with San Antonio on Friday night, head coach Quin Snyder spoke with the media and was asked about a “what if” scenario.

Snyder was asked about Spurs head coach Gregg Popovich becoming the NBA’s winningest head coach, which would’ve come true if the Jazz had lost later that night. Rather than directly addressing the situation, Snyder spoke about why Popovich has been as successful off the court as he was on the court.

“I’m grateful for the opportunities that he’s provided me,” Utah head coach Quin Snyder said of Popovich postgame. “And we competed, just like he would want. … We obviously wanted to win the game, and that didn’t happen.”

Unfortunately for Utah, Popovich broke the record as the Jazz saw a double-digit fourth quarter lead evaporate en route to a 104-102 loss Friday night.

Congratulations, Coach Pop

A historic night and 1,336 wins.#TakeNote | @spurs pic.twitter.com/f3LFE6WeuZ

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 12, 2022

It was another frustrating loss for Utah as they thoroughly dominated the Spurs for three quarters before seeing their 10-point lead disappear over the final 12 minutes. In what’s been a mystery yet to be solved, Utah struggled to keep the intensity in the fourth quarter as turnovers and defensive miscues led to the loss.

“There were times when we fouled, when we were a little bit undisciplined and that gave them a chance to get to the line,” Snyder said. “A free throw rebound, those are daggers as they say.”

Despite the loss, it felt different when Donovan Mitchell, Rudy Gobert, and Mike Conley spoke with the media following the game. There was no real blame going around — it was arguably the most united the team has been in a defeat.

Each of them said this was on the Jazz as a whole and then individually took the blame for their struggles. Whether it was Mitchell’s turnovers late, Gobert’s lack of aggressiveness on offense, or Conley’s struggles shooting the ball, there was a sense of accountability where the defeat felt more like an anomaly than a sign of things to come.

“Some are rattling out, some are being contested at the rim. … Just getting unlucky here and there,” Conley said of his shooting woes.

Don: 24p | 7r | 6a
JC: 17p | 8r | 1s | 1b
Rudy: 13p | 16r | 1a | 5b
Hassan: 13p | 10r | 1s
Danuel: 9p | 6r | 1a | 1s | 1b
Ocho: 9p | 1r
Mike: 8p | 5r | 5a | 5s
Royce: 5p | 2r | 5a | 1s | 1b
Trent: 4p | 1r | 2a | 1s
NAW: 1r #TakeNote | @getcoinzoom pic.twitter.com/VWnOJAks5V

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 12, 2022

Even with Michell and Gobert voicing their struggles, Utah’s two all-stars were sensational for much of the night.

Mitchell finished with 24 points, seven rebounds, and six assists as he’s proved that he’s much more than a pure scorer in the league. His ability to manipulate opposing defenses as a playmaker to help the Jazz strive on offense is becoming a legitimate weapon in his ever-evolving arsenal on offense.

For Gobert, he got back to his normal ways with 13 points, 16 rebounds, and five blocks, showcasing his ability to completely dominate a game on the defensive end of the court. Even though he shot the ball just three times, he did shoot 9-of-10 from the free throw line — a performance that could prove noteworthy later in the season.

| Donovan’s 23rd 20+ point game this season #TakeNote | @ZionsBank pic.twitter.com/3iEdpYZPXi

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 12, 2022

Early on, it was apparent that this game, with Popovich’s record on the line, the Spurs had extra fire to play with. But credit to the Jazz for matching that intensity in front of a raucous crowd, with Mitchell leading the charge as Utah led 33-30 after one.

As both offenses cooled down in the second quarter, Utah was able to rely on its defense as they did a phenomenal job of shutting down the Spurs from beyond the arc. Whether it was recovery on defense or running shooters off the line, the Jazz did a great job of rotating to take a 59-50 lead at the break.

Utah’s offensive struggles continued in the third quarter as they went 7:30 without scoring a bucket, but their dominant defense kept them in the game. After a pair of free throws by Josh Richardson cut the Jazz lead to three with just under four to play, Utah ended the quarter on an 11-4 run as the second unit did a great job of keeping the advantage heading into the fourth.

Utah finally broke in the fourth after staving off San Antonio’s attack for much of the game as the fouls piled up and the Spurs made a living at the free throw line. Regardless of the comeback by San Antonio, Utah fought till the end as buckets by Mitchell and Rudy Gay kept the Jazz in it until the very end.

“We’re just going to have to sit and look ourselves in the mirror and just say look, what are we going to be — one through 15,” Mitchell said. “It’s tough you know, it hurts.”

in Clarkson we trust #TakeNote | @jordanclarksons pic.twitter.com/Alx5mBuQYr

— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) March 12, 2022

Hassan Whiteside finished with a double-double of 13 points and 10 rebounds, while Jordan Clarkson continued to thrive with 17 points and nine rebounds. Gay also came out of a recent shooting slump with nine points on 3-of-4 shooting from beyond the arc.

Utah has no time to regroup as the Jazz return to Vivint Arena to face Sacramento on Saturday night. Tipoff is set for 7 p.m. MST.