UTAH -- Tonight marked the return of Alec Burks and Rodney Hood to the city of Utah, but the game did not go quite as planned.
Utah came out of the gates firing on all cylinders, as they opened up the game with a 29-20 lead, and they never looked back. Dealing with many injuries, the Cavs did not have a favorable matchup in the paint, as Utah big man Rudy Gobert scored 19 points and pulled in 15 rebounds. Jazz star guard Donovan Mitchell was cooking tonight, lighting up the Cavaliers for 24 points on an impressive 9-15 shooting.
The Cavaliers could not seem to find a rhythm throughout the entirety of the game. The Cavs shot an atrocious 7-24 beyond the arc, and were led by both Zizic and Collin Sexton in scoring, as the pair of young Cavaliers put up 15 points each. In their return to Utah, Burks and Hood scored a combined 10 points, as the Jazz cruised to a 115-99 victory.
The Cavaliers will continue their west-coast trip tomorrow night, as the Cavaliers will take on the Denver Nuggets. Tip-off is set for 10:00 PM ET at the Pepsi Center in Denver, Colorado.