Utah Jazz forward Bojan Bogdanovic (44) wins the battle for a rebound against Sacramento Kings forward Trey Lyles (41) in Salt Lake City on Sat Mar 12, 2022 (AP News photo)
By Daniel Dullum
Saturday, March 12, 2022
A big night from De’Aaron Fox wasn’t enough for Sacramento on Saturday, as Jordan Clarkson scored a career-high 45 points off the bench for Utah in a 134-125 win for the Jazz in Salt Lake City.
Clarkson’s effort helped offset the absence of Jazz players Rudy Gobert and Mike Conley while setting a Jazz franchise record for most points scored by a reserve. Clarkson has had four games with more than 40 points off the bench.
Clarkson made all eight of his 2-point attempts, all eight free throws and made seven 3-pointers.
Bojan Bogdanovic and Donovan Mitchell were next for the Jazz with 26 and 25 points, respectively. Mitchell had six assists and two steals, and center Hassan Whiteside – filling in for Gobert – grabbed a career-high 21 rebounds to go with 12 points.
Fox paced the Kings with 41 points, 11 assists, two steals and three rebounds. Harrison Barnes scored 18 points, followed by Davion Mitchell with 14, Trey Lyles with 13 and Chimezie Metu with 12. Richaun Holmes was the Kings’ top rebounder with six boards.
Clarkson sank three free throws to give Utah its largest lead at 111-95, But the Kings responded with an 11-0 run, capped by a Mitchell layup, to pull within 111-106.
However, Sacramento was unable to stop Clarkson and Donovan Mitchell and could get no closer. The Kings have lost four games in a row.
The Jazz outrebounded Sacramento 44-33 and shot 56 percent from the field and 39 percent behind the arc.
The Kings host Chicago on Monday night.
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