All-Star Lauri Markkanen Battles Through Contact For Second-Chance Bucket
Feb 11, 2023, 6:34 PM | Updated: Feb 13, 2023, 4:41 pm
SALT LAKE CITY – Lauri Markkanen isn’t just a shooter, proving his strength on a second-chance scoring opportunity against the New York Knicks.
The Jazz (28-29, 10th in West) travel to New York to face the Knicks (30-27, 7th in East) in the second game of a back-to-back for Utah.
if at first you don't Finnish, try, try again 🇫🇮 pic.twitter.com/u7426FEHc9
— Utah Jazz (@utahjazz) February 12, 2023
With Utah trailing 47-40, first-time All-Star Lauri Markkanen missed his first attempt but wouldn’t quit. After the rebound bounced around, Markkanen ended up with it and immediately powered to the hoop. The first-year Jazz forward finished at the rim while getting fouled by Josh Hart. Markkanen drained the free throw to bring the Jazz with four points.
Knicks guard Jalen Brunson is pacing all scorers with 22 first-half points. Collin Sexton leads Utah with 10 points. Jordan Clarkson, Rudy Gay, and Talen Horton-Tucker each have nine first-half points.
After trailing by as many as 12, Utah clawed back for a 62-56 halftime deficit.
RELATED: Kessler Career-High Helps Jazz Rally In Toronto
4th Quarter Comeback In Toronto
The Jazz fell behind 111-98 with 5:17 left in the fourth quarter and looked dead to rights after a Pascal Siakam jump shot.
But after struggling to find an offensive rhythm against the Raptors’ defense for the first 43 minutes of the game, the Jazz turned to Markkanen, Kessler, and Kelly Olynyk and quickly erased the Toronto lead.
RELATED: Jazz Stun Raptors With Late Fourth Quarter Rally
The frontcourt trio scored 10 of the Jazz’s next 12 points and cut the Raptors’ lead from 13 to three in just over two minutes of game time.
The big lineup helped the Jazz outscore Toronto 39-20 in the fourth quarter including 22-5 in the final 5:17 as the team won the game going away.
The Jazz turned to a lineup of Sexton, Markkanen, Olynyk, Kessler, and Talen Horton-Tucker to close the game and scored on their final 11 possessions of the night.
.@utahjazz guard Collin Sexton has been dealing tonight#TakeNotehttps://t.co/Mtoei9Npd5
— KSL Sports (@kslsports) February 11, 2023
Sexton had one of his most complete performances of the season with 22 points, matching his personal best in a Jazz uniform while adding five rebounds, and six assists.
The guard shot an efficient 8-14 from the floor and 6-7 from the free-throw line in 37 minutes on the court.
Jazz & Knicks On Back-To-Back
The Knicks had won two straight and three out of four before falling to the Philadelphia 76ers on the road 119-108 on Friday.
New York sits in the seventh seed in the East just behind the Miami Heat for the sixth and final guaranteed playoff spot in the conference.
The Knicks added guard Josh Hart from the Portland Trail Blazers at Thursday’s deadline in exchange for little-used Cam Reddish, Ryan Arcidiacono, Svi Mykhailiuk, and a lottery-protected first-round pick.
Tonight’s matchup by the numbers 📊 pic.twitter.com/lGJbfEwlHz
— NEW YORK KNICKS (@nyknicks) February 11, 2023
The Jazz fell to the Knicks 118-111 in November despite 27 points from Kelly Olynyk. Jalen Brunson scored 25 points and had eight assists for the Knicks.
Utah Jazz vs. New York Knicks Broadcast Details
The Utah Jazz and New York Knicks game is televised on AT&T SportsNet and can be heard on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone. It can also be streamed on DirecTV Stream and FuboTV.
