After a disappointing loss in Phoenix just one night earlier, the Utah Jazz hosted the Portland Trail Blazers on Thursday night. These two teams are very familiar with each other, and tend to have many back-and-forth battles each season. Tonight’s game seemed destined to go the same way.
The first quarter was a boxing match, with each team taking turns swinging. Donovan Mitchell came out of the gate on fire, as he has for much of this late stretch of the season. Damian Lillard and CJ McCollum countered with some tough jumpers, and the two teams traded small leads.