Mitchell, Conley Help Jazz Take Home Court Advantage Back With Game 3 Win

SALT LAKE CITY, Utah – All that the Utah Jazz needed to do was steal a game in Memphis and they did that with a 121-111 win over the Grizzlies in Game 3.

Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley led the way as “Mountain Mike” returned to Memphis for the first time as an opponent in the playoffs as the Jazz take a 2-1 series lead over the Grizzlies.

Mitchell had 29 points to lead the way, while Conley added 27 points and 8 assists. Rudy Gobert recorded a double-double with 15 points, 14 rebounds and 4 blocks. Bojan Bogdanovic poured in 15 points, along with 12 points from Royce O’Neale.

Ja Morant finished with 28 points to lead the Grizzlies. Dillon Brooks added 27 points and former Jazzman Grayson Allen scored 17 points off the bench.

The @utahjazz beat the @memgrizz 121-111 to go up in the opening round series 2-1.

Donovan Mitchell had 10 points in the fourth quarter to finish with 29 points to lead all scorers. #TakeNote pic.twitter.com/iUGouSaEoR

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) May 30, 2021

Conley, O’Neale Give Jazz A Double Digit Lead In First Half

Unlike the first two games of the series, the Jazz shot the ball really well, particularly from beyond the arc. In the first quarter, they made seven three-pointers on 15 attempts. Royce O’Neale made three triples, Conley hit two threes, along with one each from Joe Ingles and Georges Niang.

Memphis made just 39 percent from the field in the first 12 minutes of play. Ja Morant scored 8 points as the team made just two of their seven attempts from the perimeter. Utah outscored the Grizzlies 34-22.

The Grizzlies responded in the second quarter but the Jazz stayed with them as Memphis outscored Utah 29-28. Six different Jazz players scored in the second quarter as they shot 4-of-10 from beyond the arc. Memphis made 44 percent of their field goal attempts and went 5-for-13 from three. The Jazz held a 62-51 halftime lead.

Both Royce O’Neale and Mike Conley scored 12 points in the first half. Memphis got 13 points from Morant and 12 from Dillon Brooks.

At the half, the @utahjazz lead the @memgrizz 62-51.

The Jazz keep stemming any Memphis run with a made three.

Conley and O'Neale each have 12 for the Jazz. #Takenote pic.twitter.com/BYImOBCD95

— KSL Sports (@kslsports) May 30, 2021

Conley, Mitchell Take Over In Fourth Quarter To Take Down Grizzlies

It was an even third quarter as both teams scored 34 points. Both teams shot over 50 percent from the field and over 43 percent from downtown. The Jazz made six triples in the third, while Memphis hit four from the perimeter. Donovan Mitchell scored 10 points in eight minutes. Jonas Valanciunas led Memphis with 10 points in the third. Utah took a 96-85 lead going into the fourth quarter. Four of the five starters were already in double figures for the Jazz.

Early in the fourth quarter, Memphis went on an 8-0 run and pulled to within three points. Shortly after, Grayson Allen hit a three-pointer to tie the game with under 8 minutes left in the game. That capped a 13-2 run which ended after Rudy Gobert threw down a putback dunk.

Down the stretch, Donovan Mitchell took over and the Jazz pulled away from the Grizzlies.

The Jazz took a 2-1 series lead over the Grizzlies. Game 4 will be on Monday, May 31 at 7:30 p.m. MDT on TNT and AT&T SportsNet.