Will Hardy Calls One Part of Utah Jazz's Loss to Rockets Unacceptable

Another night, another loss for the Utah Jazz.

This time, the Jazz fell in their second NBA Cup loss to the Houston Rockets, 118-125, now dropping them to their 11th straight defeat, and continues to keep them at the bottom of the Western Conference.

However, for this game in particular, Jazz head coach Will Hardy saw one aspect of his team that didn't quite meet the standard–– and ultimately might've been the difference between ending their lengthy losing streak and keeping it alive.

That was none other than the Jazz's ability to guard Rockets center Alperen Sengun, who had a dominant individual night where he saw 43 points, 12 rebounds and five assists en route to what could be his best performance of the season so far.

What Will Hardy Said After Jazz's Loss vs. Rockets

Hardy spoke after the game to note that while he was proud of the team's competitiveness, the missed double teams sent on Sengun were "unacceptable."

"Another night where the competitiveness continues to shine through. Ultimately, for us to get the result that we want, our execution needs to meet the level of our competitiveness," Hardy said. "I think we're competing at a really high level. We are not executing at a high enough level right now."

"The biggest one tonight is the number of missed double teams on Sengun. That's unacceptable. There's no way around that detail of the game," Hardy said.

Nov 13, 2026; Houston, Texas, USA; Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) dunks against the Utah Jazz during the fourth quarter at Toyota Center. Mandatory Credit: Erik Williams-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Sengun's 43 points were the most he's seen in a game dating back to the 2023-24 season, when he saw an impressive 45 points against the San Antonio Spurs, who ultimately ended that season with 22 wins. Not exactly the best company you'd like to see the Jazz next to.

The signs were there for Sengun to have a strong performance in the first half, where he finished with 19 points and seven rebounds. Regardless, the Jazz couldn't limit him much further in the second half, and that task became even tougher when Jaxson Hayes went down with a knee injury and didn't return.

Despite the continued losses and the explosive performance from Sengun, though, Hardy still managed to give his squad a pat on the back for the way they've been battling through their recent adversity.

"But again, I'm really proud of the competitiveness from the team, their collective spirit, every night battling through adversity and guys getting injured," Hardy continued postgame.

"It's been very revealing of the character of the team. This is a high-character group of guys we have in our locker room. I'm really proud of their fight. We'll keep working."

Between the multiple injuries around the lineup, the underwhelming performance on both sides of the ball, and the extended losses to come with it, this has been far from the start to the season that the Jazz could've hoped for.

They'll head back to the drawing board for their next matchup against the San Antonio Spurs on Sunday afternoon at 3 p.m. MT, where maybe then the Jazz can get back on track with their first win in over three weeks.

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