Utah Jazz center Walker Kessler (24) dunks during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Portland Trail Blazers, Friday, Dec. 6, 2024, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Jenny Kane)
PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) — John Collins scored 20 points, Keyonte George had 17 and the Utah Jazz snapped a five-game losing streak with a 141-99 rout of the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.
Walker Kessler had 13 points, 17 rebounds and five blocks for the Jazz in just their fifth win of the season.
Jerami Grant had 19 points for Portland in its third straight loss. The Blazers trailed by 46 points and drew boos from the home fans.
The Jazz raced to a 38-20 lead. The Blazers were hurt early in the game when Toumani Camara limped off the court with a right foot injury and did not return.
The Jazz led 67-44 at the half and pushed the margin to 30 points at 76-46 in the third quarter. All of Utah’s starters were in double figures at that point.
Takeaways
Jazz: Forward Lauri Markkanen was a late scratch with lower back injury management. He missed three games earlier in the season with the same issue. Svi Mykhailiuk started in his place.
Trail Blazers: Portland was without Scoot Henderson for the fifth straight game because of a left quad contusion. Rookie Donovan Clingan has a sprained left knee.
Key Mmment
Collin Sexton passed to Collins for a dunk that gave the Jazz a 90-59 lead in the third quarter and put the bench on their feet. Shaedon Sharpe had a soaring dunk in the first half as the Blazers tried unsuccessfully to erase the deficit.
Key stat
Blazers guard Anfernee Simons became the fourth player in Portland history to make 800-plus 3-pointers, joining Damian Lillard, CJ McCollum and Wesley Matthews. Overall the Blazers were dismal from the perimeter, making just 14 of 47 3-pointers.
Up next
Both teams are back in action Sunday night. The Jazz are at Kings, and Trail Blazers at the Los Angeles Lakers.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba
By ANNE M. PETERSON
AP Sports Writer
