Mitchell, Jazz rebound to tie series vs. Nuggets
Donovan Mitchell remained patient with Den- ver’s defense making things difficult for him.
Instead of forcing the issue, he simply distributed the ball — until his opening arrived.
Mitchell scored 21 of his 30 points in a big third quarter and the Utah Jazz beat the Nuggets 124-105 on Wednesday to even the first-round playoff series at a game apiece.
All part of his maturation as a playmaker.
“The biggest thing for me is reading the situation,” Mitchell explained. “My first years, I kind of saw the rim, being a scorer. I prided myself over the quarantine just how to become play-maker. Find a way to get the team involved. It may not always be scoring. I think today, just trusted my teammates.”
Mitchell was an efficient 10 of 14 from the floor and added eight assists. He helped the Jazz break open the game in the third quarter and increase the lead to 31 in the fourth.
Mitchell’s teammates contributed in a pivotal way. Jordan Clarkson scored a personal playoff-best 26 points on a day the Jazz shot 51.7% from the floor. They also had 32 assists and hit 20 3-pointers.
CELTICS 128, 76ERS 101 >> Jayson Tatum scored 33 points as Boston won to take a 2-0 lead in the first-round Eastern Conference playoff series.
Tatum scored a career playoff high for the second straight game after scoring 32 points in the opener Monday.
Kemba Walker added 22 points and Jaylen Brown had 20 for the Celtics. Boston shot 51% from the field and committed just seven turnovers, including two in the first three quarters.
Joel Embiid had 34 points and 10 rebounds for the 76ers, and Josh Richardson added 18 points.
The Celtics lost starting forward Gordon Hayward to a right ankle sprain in Game 1, and expects him to be out for approximately four weeks. Marcus Smart stepped into the starting lineup, and Boston adjusted seamlessly. The 76ers led by 14 in the first quarter, but the Celtics rallied to lead 65-57 at halftime.
RAPTORS 104, NETS 99 >> Fred VanVleet had 24 points and 10 assists, Norman Powell had a big game off the bench with 24 points and defending NBA champion Toronto beat Brooklyn to take a 2-0 series lead.
Kyle Lowry had 21 points, nine rebounds and forced a big turnover in the closing seconds for the second seeded Raptors. Garrett Temple led the Nets with 21 points, and Caris LeVert had 16 points and 11 rebounds.
CLIPPERS’ BEVERLY OUT WITH CALF INJURY >> Patrick Beverley missed Game 2 of the Los Angeles Clippers’ firstround series against Dallas, leaving Los Angeles without one of its top defenders against Luka Doncic. Clippers coach Doc Rivers said the guard had a left calf injury and wasn’t moving well at shootaround, so the team decided to scratch him from the game Wednesday.
NO VIRUS CASES AFTER LATEST ROUND OF TESTING >> The NBA is into the postseason without having any confirmed coronavirus cases among players inside the bubble at Walt Disney World. The league and the National Basketball Players Association announced that none of the 341 players who had been tested since results were last released on Aug. 12 had been positive.
The season resumed at Disney on July 30 and the postseason began Monday. Players have been tested daily while on campus. There were two cases of players testing positive upon their arrival at Disney, both of which were found before either made it out of the initial mandatory in-room quarantine.