Jazz Fall to Pacers, 134-118: Three Key Takeaways

The Indiana Pacers outscored the Utah Jazz by 13 points in the fourth quarter and cruised to a 134-118 victory. Aaron Nesmith came off the bench to lead Indiana with 24 points, while Myles Turner and Bennedict Mathurin contributed 22.

Jordan Clarkson led Utah with 33 points in a losing cause. The Jazz were in striking distance after three quarters, but it was all Pacers after that.

There were some positives to take from the defeat, but at the end of the day, a lack of transition defense and an inability to finish the game made the difference. Let's break down my three key takeaways from another double-digit Jazz loss.

Simone Fontecchio Sighting

The second-year Jazzman got his first chance of live reps with the game on the line on Thursday. Fontecchio had a good showing and should get more opportunities moving forward.

Fontecchio scored 10 points in the first half on 4-for-5 shooting in just nine minutes of action.

Consistent minutes have been hard to come by since arriving in Salt Lake City last season. Time will tell whether Thursday’s performance was an anomaly or the start of something to build on.

Improvement From the Starting Five

Jazz fans have been screaming for a change to the starting five, and they got just that against the Pacers. Will Hardy inserted Ochai Agbaji as the starting small forward while rookie Keyonte George began the game at point guard.

The Jazz had a strong showing in their first game with the new lineup. Despite the Pacers scoring the game's first seven points, the Jazz stormed back and took a 14-12 lead before Kelly Olynyk subbed in at the 7:29 mark in the first quarter.

In the second half, Utah outscored Indiana by four points before the first sub came in with 6:29 in the quarter. Despite the loss, Jazz fans should be pleased with the changes.

Where’s the Defense?

The Pacers entered the game as the No. 1 scoring team in the league, and Utah didn’t do much to change that. The Pacers finished the game with 134 points on an efficient 51.5% shooting from the field.

The buckets came early and often with not much resistance at the rim. Missing Walker Kessler was a factor, but Utah has got to be better if it's ever going to get back in the playoff conversation.

Next up for the Jazz is their first game in the In-Season Tournament versus the Memphis Grizzlies on Friday.

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