Utah Jazz: 3 reasons the season is over

3. Jazz couldn’t beat the Rockets at their own game

The best way to beat the Rockets is to shoot the 3-ball better than them. While that is easier said than done, it’s one of the reasons the Jazz are on vacation now.

The series was over in Game 4 when the Rockets shot 26.3 percent from the 3-point line and the Jazz were not able to capitalize because they shot 24.1 percent from deep. That was why the Jazz still lost by 13 points.

The Jazz just don’t have the 3-point shooters that the Rockets do. The combined efforts of Trevor Ariza, Chris Paul, Eric Gordon, James Harden were just too much to handle.

In Game 3, when the series was tied 1-1, the Jazz actually won the 3-point battle shooting 37.9 percent from downtown while the Rockets shot 30.6 percent.

The Jazz still lost that game 113-92 after Trevor Ariza shot 50 percent from the field, P.J. Tucker shot 66.7 percent, Clint Capela shot 62.5 percent from the field and James Harden shot 47.1 percent.

Gordon was able to shoot 61.5 percent from the field coming off the bench as well.

The 3-pointer isn’t end-all, be-all of the Rockets, but if the Jazz were able to dominate the 3-point line while running the Rockets off the 3-point line, they probably would’ve made the series a little bit longer.