It doesn't take the smartest person in the world to figure out the major problem spot in Utah's humiliating 104-99 loss to Sacramento on Saturday night.
The third quarter is what did the Jazz in.
In those 12 minutes, Utah forgot that it was supposed to play defense. In that period, the Jazz forgot how to make shots and were out rebounded and out hustled in the process, leading to boos from the faithful at EnergySolutions Arena.
And now Utah is left to explain another mystifying loss in what has been a frustrating start to the season.
"It was a bad game for us, it's as simple as that," Jazz point guard Deron Williams said. "The third quarter was even worse. We couldn't get stops, our offense got a little stagnant. You see for yourself. We got outscored 30-13."
The 13 points that Utah managed in the third period represents a season-low. And a variety of factors contributed to the meager out put. The Jazz missed shots, shots that they normally make. They also turned the ball over five times. Williams, who played 44 minutes, went 2-6 in the period, and that led to the Kings being able to race out to a 19 point lead late in the period.
"We couldn't hit anything," Utah center Mehmet Okur said. "They executed better than us. We couldn't stop them and it seemed like they hit every shot. This is a tough loss for us."
Adding to the misery was Tyreke Evans. The Sacramento rookie scored 11 of his career-high 32 points in the quarter, many of them on drives to the basket and step back jumpers. He was perfect from the field in the third period, going 3-3 from the floor and 4-4 from the free throw stripe. His ability to break the Jazz down off the dribble led to open looks for him and his teammates.
"This is how I used to play at Memphis," Evans said. "Up and down, fastbreaks. Once I got that going, I got a rhythm. I felt like I was unstoppable getting to the basket."
