Mitchell, Gobert propel Jazz to 114-97 win over Suns

PHOENIX (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 16 of his 26 points in the second half, leading the Utah Jazz to a 114-97 win over the Phoenix Suns on Wednesday night.

Derrick Favors and Rudy Gobert added 18 points apiece for Utah. Gobert also grabbed 20 rebounds as the Jazz ended a two-game skid and pulled into a tie with the Los Angeles Clippers for the seventh playoff seed in the Western Conference.

Devin Booker’s 27 points led the Suns, who came back from 14 down in the third quarter to tie the score but couldn’t push past the Jazz in the fourth. Kelly Oubre Jr. added 18 points and Tyler Johnson had 15 for the Suns, who had won four of five.

Utah led by 21 in the fourth quarter, pulling away after Phoenix tied it at 75 late in the third. Mitchell hit a 3-pointer with 2:57 left to make it 105-89.

Ricky Rubio returned to the Jazz after missing two games with left hip tightness. He played 22 minutes and had six points and four assists.

All three of Gobert’s field goals in the first quarter were dunks, and with 52 seconds left in the period he delivered a look-away bounce pass to Jae Crowder for a layup.

The Suns led by four in the second, but the Jazz surged ahead with a 9-0 run. Another dunk by Gobert off a lob from Rubio made it 48-41 with 1:54 left in the first half.

Mitchell’s 3 with 21 seconds remaining made it 53-41, and the Jazz led by 10 at halftime. Gobert had 12 points and 10 rebounds in the first half.

Utah went ahead by 14 early in the third quarter, but the Suns put together a 12-2 run to make it 59-55 with 8:29 to go.

The crowd was buzzing even two possessions after Suns big man Richaun Holmes threw down a windmill dunk with his left hand with 3:39 to go in the third, cutting the Jazz lead to 72-66.

A pair of free throws by Booker tied it at 75 with 30 seconds left. Joe Ingles hit a 3 out of the corner for a 78-75 lead for the Jazz at the end of three quarters.

T’D UP

Oubre was whistled for a technical foul for shouting at an official as he walked to the bench with blood trickling out of his nose just before halftime.

TIP-INS

Jazz: Improved to 8-4 in the first of back-to-back games this season. … The first basket of the game for the Jazz came when Mitchell drove across the lane and delivered a no-look bounce pass to Favors for a dunk. … G Raul Neto entered in the second quarter, his first game since Feb. 27 because of hamstring tightness. He played 11 minutes.

Suns: Recalled rookie guard Elie Okobo from Northern Arizona of the G-League. … Head coach Igor Kokoskov was on Utah coach Quin Snyder’s staff at Missouri in 1999-2000, and with the Jazz from 2015-18. … Oubre tossed two sweat towels into the seats to young fans during the game.

UP NEXT

Jazz: Return home to host Minnesota on Thursday night.

Suns: At the Houston Rockets on Friday night.