SALT LAKE CITY - The Utah Jazz lost another close battle on the road, falling to the Memphis Grizzlies 122-115.
John Collins and Collin Sexton each had 22 points in the loss to lead the Jazz.
There was a common formula throughout the Jazz's five-game winless road trip -- fall behind by double-digits, battle back late, lose a close game by single digits.
Against Washington, the Jazz trailed by as many as 16, cut the lead to one in the fourth quarter but fell 125-122.
Against Toronto, the Jazz again trailed by 16, trimmed the gap to six late, but lost 118-109.
In Philadelphia, the Jazz trailed by 22, cut the deficit to two in the final minute of the game, but lost 126-122.
Against Boston, the Jazz trailed by 24, tied the game at 103 late in the fourth, but fell 114-108.
Finally, against the Grizzlies, the Jazz fell behind by 19, took a one-point lead with 1:16 left to play, but fell 122-115.
Though the Jazz may be focused on improving their draft late in the season, they don't want to waste the last quarter of the season getting blown out by opponents, rendering most minutes superfluous in player development.
That wasn't the case during the road trip.
I thought Cody [Williams]had a very good game defensively tonight and is showing more force when he plays," Jazz coach Will Hardy said. [Kyle Filipowski] continues to be really solid in his minutes. Isaiah [Collier] has been a tremendous playmaker for us this season, so I'm still seeing a lot of growth from our young guys."
Having five straight games, played on the road, in high-leverage situations, without sacrificing lottery balls is a positive outcome, even if the Jazz didn't escape with any wins.
If the Jazz can find a way to continue to keep games close, without hurting their lottery odds, they'll have at least partially salvaged what will be an ugly win-loss record at season's end.
While Wednesday's game was close, the Jazz have still been the NBA's worst road team since early January.
The Jazz are 0-14 on the road since January 6 and are the league's only winless team during the stretch.
Their 14 consecutive losses eclipse last year's 13-game losing streak, and are the most since the Jazz lost 17 straight during the 1981-82 season.
The Jazz haven't won a road game since those back-to-back victories in Miami and Orlando in early January.
-- Ben Anderson (@benshoops.bsky.social) March 12, 2025 at 1:52 PM
Unfortunately for the Jazz, the road won't get any easier in the immediate future.
After returning home for a one-off home game on Friday against the Toronto Raptors, the Jazz head back on the road to face the red-hot Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday night.
The Jazz will then play six straight at home, before closing the season with six of their final eight games of the season on the road.
Among the teams left on their road schedule, only the Charlotte Hornets and Atlanta Hawks having losing records, and both already beat the Jazz this season in Salt Lake City.
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The Jazz will also travel to face the Denver Nuggets, the Houston Rockets, and the Indiana Pacers, before closing the year in Minnesota on April 13.
As a franchise, the Jazz have failed to reach double-digit wins on the road nine times in their 51-year history.
The Jazz will have to win three more games away from home this season to reach 10 wins on the road.
The Utah Jazz will return home to face the Toronto Raptors on Friday at 7:30 p.m. MST. The game will be televised on KJZZ, streamed on Jazz+, and heard on 97.5 The KSL Sports Zone.
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