Jaren Jackson Jr. recorded 24 points and 10 rebounds while Keyonte George contributed 19 points and 10 assists on Friday to rally the Utah Jazz to a narrow 120-119 victory against the New Orleans Pelicans in Salt Lake City.
The home-opening win allowed the Jazz to rebound from an opening-night loss on Wednesday at Memphis while snapping a lengthy drought against New Orleans. Utah defeated the Pelicans for the first time since November 2023, having dropped all three matchups in each of the previous two seasons while surrendering an eight-game winning streak in the series.
Utah built early control by dominating the interior, scoring 22 of their 31 first-quarter points in the paint. The Jazz maintained their advantage through the first half, avoiding any deficits before intermission and extending their margin to 40-30 early in the second quarter following a 9-0 run bookended by 3-pointers from Lauri Markkanen and Brice Sensabaugh.
The lead expanded further to 67-52 early in the third quarter when Markkanen connected on another trey. However, the game shifted shortly before halftime when New Orleans center Yves Missi suffered a left knee injury with 6:4, left in the second quarter. Missi was unable to put weight on his leg as he was helped off the court, finishing with six points on 3-of-3 shooting across nine minutes of action.
Despite losing their starting center, the Pelicans mounted a significant third-quarter comeback by erasing a 15-point deficit. New Orleans scored on 10 consecutive possessions during the surge, capped by a reverse layup from Dejounte Murray that gave the visitors their first lead at 75-74 midway through the period. Murray accounted for five baskets during the scoring run as the Pelicans piled up 38 points in the third quarter.
Carrying that momentum into the fourth period, New Orleans extended its advantage to 99-94, its largest lead of the night, following back-to-back baskets from Bennedict Mathurin and Saddiq Bey. Utah responded decisively with a 15-3 run fueled by a 3-pointer from George and a floater by Jaxson Hayes off a feed from George, reclaiming a 109-102 edge with 5:35 remaining.
In the final minute, Utah rookie Darryn Peterson scored 15 points overall, sinking two go-ahead free throws with 50.5 seconds left on the clock to help secure the margin. Zion Williamson led the Pelicans with 23 points, while Saddiq Bey added 20 points off the bench and Dejounte Murray finished with 16. New Orleans had an opportunity to steal the win in the closing moments, but Murray missed a potential game-winning jumper with just one second remaining, dropping the Pelicans to an 0-2 start on the season.
Jaxson Hayes added 17 points off the bench for Utah, and Lauri Markkanen chipped in 16 points to support the balanced offensive attack.
