Utah Jazz use fourth quarter rally to defeat Toronto Raptors 93-89

Alec Burks of Utah Jazz (Internet photo)

SALT LAKE CITY  – Alec Burks made the go-ahead jumper with 1:12 left and scored nine of his 13 points in Utah’s big fourth quarter, helping the Jazz beat the Toronto Raptors 93-89 on Wednesday night.

Derrick Favours had 18 points, 11 rebounds and a clinching three-point play for the Jazz, who trailed by six midway through the final period before an 11-2 run gave them their first lead since the second quarter.

Rodney Hood had 16 points, six rebounds and four assists for the Jazz. Gordon Hayward finished with 17 points and seven rebounds.

Luis Scola carried the offensive load for Toronto in the first half with 18 points and finished with a season-high 22. Kyle Lowry scored 20 and had six assists and three rebounds, while DeMar DeRozan rebounded from a slow start to score 14, including 12 in the fourth quarter.

The Jazz jumped out to a 22-13 lead in the first quarter thanks to a 14-0 run and had a double-digit lead early in the second, but it was all Raptors for the rest of the half. Toronto closed on a 17-4 run to take a 45-42 lead into halftime.

TIP-INS

Raptors: First-round draft pick Delon Wright made his first trip back to Salt Lake City as an NBA player and was welcomed by a throng of media. He was the star of the Utah team that advanced to the Sweet 16 in March, but did not play Wednesday. Terrance Ross did not play due to a left thumb ligament injury.

Jazz: Burks averaged a team-high 16.2 points through the first 10 games. His first basket didn’t come until late in the third quarter. The Jazz scored 35 combined points in the second and third quarters and 34 in the fourth quarter. Utah gave up 40 points in the paint after entering the game with a league-best average of 34.8 points allowed.

HOME SWEET HOME

The Jazz returned home from a four-game road trip for just their third home game of the season. They are one of five teams since 1975-76 to start a season with eight of the first 10 games on the road. The team was pleased with the .500 start that included narrow losses to the Cavaliers and Heat and a win against the Hawks. They were also without starters Rudy Gobert for two games and Hood for one. “Adversity, endurance, mental toughness,” Jazz coach Quin Snyder said when asked the biggest takeaway. “Those things manifest themselves immediately, or over the course of the season, or over the course of years.” Hood added, “I don’t think a lot of people thought we were going to do that well.”

SLOW STARTS

Dwane Casey lamented his team’s slow starts before the game and Wednesday was no different. “All we can do is address it,” Casey said. “If we don’t get a better start, the only other option is to change that starting lineup. I don’t know if we’re at that point yet. Believe me, I have every number known to man as far as our woes in the first quarter. We’re aware of it. We work to try to correct it. It’s still our Achilles heel right now.”