Donovan Mitchell's 45-point outburst lifts Jazz past Clippers in Game 1
Big-time players make big-time plays, and in the playoffs, they produce big-time games.
For Utah Jazz All-Star guard Donovan Mitchell, the playoffs have become his playground during his young career, and in Game 1 of the Western Conference semifinals against the LA Clippers on Tuesday night, it was more of the same.
On the same court against fellow All-Stars Kawhi Leonard and Paul George, ‘Spida’ was clearly the best player on Tuesday night, exploding for 45 points – 32 coming in the second half – to lead the Jazz to a 112-109 victory.
It really was a tale of two halves for the Jazz, who trailed by 13 points at the break. But Mitchell kicked it into overdrive in the second half, immediately running off 10 straight points to start the third quarter. From that point on, the rim seemed as big as the ocean for the explosive guard.
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Mitchell's confidence was apparent on the court, but his leadership on the sidelines was on full display, too. Heading into the fourth quarter, he implored his team that if they just kept the pressure on the Clippers that they would fold, as they were coming off of a grueling seven-game series against the Dallas Mavericks. And though the Clippers didn't fold, they must have been wondering what they deserved to again have to try to stop an unstoppable player so soon after outlasting the Mavs' Luka Dončić.
As previously stated, this is nothing new for Mitchell.
He has now tied Karl Malone for the most 40-point playoff games in Jazz history, doing it in 166 fewer games than Malone. And he has more 45-point playoff games than all other Utah players combined.
With another impressive performance for Mitchell, he once again captured the attention of spectators, setting Twitter ablaze with his 45-point outburst.
Here are the top tweets from the night surrounding his night.
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