NBA: Warriors rally past Jazz behind Klay Thompson
Jordan Poole #3 of the Golden State Warriors is congratulated by Klay Thompson #11 and Draymond Green #23 after making a three point basket against the Utah Jazz in the fourth quarter at Chase Center on April 02, 2022 in San Francisco, California. Ezra Shaw/Getty Images/AFP
Klay Thompson bombed in 12 of his game-high 36 points in an 18-0 fourth-quarter flurry Saturday night as the Golden State Warriors rallied for a 111-107 victory over the visiting Utah Jazz in San Francisco.
The improbable win, during which they trailed by as many as 21, allowed the Warriors (49-29) to clinch a postseason berth. They increased their lead over the Dallas Mavericks (48-30) to a full game atop a four-team duel for the No. 3 seed in West.
Thompson finished 8-for-17 on 3-pointers and the Warriors 20-for-48, including 6-for-7 in the 18-point barrage that turned a 16-point deficit into their first lead of the night at 105-103 with 3:33 remaining.
36 points for Klay.
31 points for Poole.The @warriors backcourt powers them to a 21-point comeback win 🔥 pic.twitter.com/UvsZF4xA2o
— NBA (@NBA) April 3, 2022
Utah never led again, but came close when, trailing 107-106 with 49.7 seconds left, Rudy Gobert got inside the Golden State defense for a point-blank attempt. But Draymond Green blocked the shot, allowing the Warriors — with the help of two free throws apiece by Jordan Poole and Green — to hold on and snap a four-game losing streak.
Poole finished with 31 points, making six of his 15 3-point attempts. Even without injured Stephen Curry, the Warriors outscored the Jazz 60-45 from beyond the arc.
Andrew Wiggins chipped in with 17 points for Golden State, while Green had a team-high seven assists and eight rebounds to complement 10 points. Gary Payton II added 10 points off the bench as the Warriors won the season series from the Jazz 3-1.
Guards Donovan Mitchell and Mike Conley had 26 points apiece for Utah, while Gobert recorded his third double-double in three tries against the Warriors this season with 14 points and a game-high 20 rebounds. Conley also found time for a game-high eight assists.
Bojan Bogdanovic put up 17 points and Jordan Clarkson 14 for Utah, which lost despite outscoring the Warriors 16-11 at the foul line and outrebounding them 47-41.
Seeking a second straight win after losing five in a row, the Jazz bolted to a 7-0 lead and went up by as many as 10 late in the first quarter and 21 in the second.
The Warriors were still down 103-87 with 7:54 to play before using their run of 3-pointers to grab the lead for good.
