Mitchell scores 23 as surging Jazz beat Pistons 104-81

SALT LAKE CITY (AP) — Donovan Mitchell scored 23 points and Jordan Clarkson added 20 to lead the Utah Jazz over the Detroit Pistons 104-81 on Monday night.

Rudy Gobert added 13 points and 19 rebounds for the surging Jazz, and Bojan Bogdanovic scored 17. Utah won for the eighth time in nine games.

Derrick Rose had 20 points to lead the Pistons, and Andre Drummond added 15 points and 13 rebounds. Detroit has dropped seven straight against Utah.

Amid early offensive struggles, the Jazz never wavered on defense. Utah forced Detroit to commit 17 turnovers and scored 25 points off those miscues.

Utah never found much of an offensive rhythm in the first half. The Jazz did not score their first basket until five minutes into the game and shot just 33.3% from the floor before halftime.

Detroit did not fare much better, shooting 38% in the first half. That opened the door for Utah to keep things close.

The Pistons carved out a 38-31 lead late in the second quarter when Tim Frazier capped a 9-2 run with a driving layup. Detroit never trailed during the period, but could not pull away. Utah closed the gap in the final two minutes of the quarter, cutting the deficit to 40-39 going into halftime when Mitchell and Gobert each scored on a dunk and Mitchell added a pair of free throws.

The Jazz really got rolling on offense in the third quarter. Utah opened the second half on a 16-2 run to take a 55-42 lead midway through the quarter. Mitchell sparked the surge with back-to-back baskets, and Joe Ingles punctuated it with consecutive buckets as well.

Detroit cut the deficit to 70-63 early in the fourth on a driving floater from Rose. The Jazz pulled away for good behind a 20-6 run. Bogdanovic fueled the run with three baskets. Mitchell capped it with a step-back jumper that gave Utah a 90-69 lead with 5:17 remaining.

TIP-INS

Pistons: Blake Griffin (left knee soreness) and Markieff Morris (left foot sprain) did not play. … Detroit was outscored 36-35 in bench points. The Pistons came into the game ranked second in bench scoring with 47.5 points per game.

Jazz: Gobert grabbed at least 15 rebounds for the fourth time in the last six games. … Rayjon Tucker made his Jazz debut and finished with two points in two minutes. … Utah outscored Detroit 15-11 in fast-break points.

UP NEXT

The Pistons visit the Los Angeles Clippers on Thursday.

The Jazz visit the Chicago Bulls on Thursday.