SALT LAKE CITY — The highly anticipated Russell Westbrook vs. Ricky Rubio smackdown came off Monday at Vivint Arena with relatively few fireworks. A bit of bumping, a little Westbarking, but that was about it.
The Jazz won it with room to spare, 113-96.
Westbrook’s promise of shutting down Rubio, following the Jazz guard’s triple-double last Saturday, didn’t totally happen, but it actually didn’t much matter.
A triple-double from their point guard isn’t something the Jazz plan on.
Either way, Westbrook’s comments following Saturday’s game added spice to a competitive but unremarkable playoff series.
The pregame buzz again proved that controversy — contrived or real — is alive and well in the NBA.