Despite a close finish, the Utah Jazz could not get it done on Wednesday night at home vs. the Chicago Bulls, falling 117-119 at home. It effectively scales the Jazz down to a 28-35 regular season record on the year, now struggling with a 2-8 stretch over their last ten games.
And while the contest didn't end with a win, it was a big night for the Jazz rookie, Brice Sensabaugh. After only appearing in 13 games before this one, head coach Will Hardy decided to start the first-year wing due to the array of absences his squad was dealing with.
Without Lauri Markkanen, Walker Kessler, Keyonte George, or Taylor Hendricks, there was a golden opportunity present for Sensabaugh, and he executed nicely. He finished with a career-high in points (15) and rebounds (12), paired with one assist on 62.5/50.0/100 splits.
Coach Hardy spoke with the media after Wednesday's loss vs. Chicago, discussing some of the positive qualities he saw from the rookie during his first NBA start:
"I thought Brice did a pretty good job," Hardy said. "He had a couple of nice drives with some physicality. I was happy with his defensive rebounding tonight, that's been a big emphasis for him is participating in all of the things that aren't scoring. I thought, overall, he did a good job defensively, still got to work on some technique stuff and directing the ball in pick and roll, but, Brice is playing hard. He's learning, and he's letting us coach him hard. I think he's showing the ability to learn on the fly. He's able to pick things up in a game, which is always a good sign as a coach."
With the status of Wednesday's inactive remain foggy moving forward, this strong performance from Sensabaugh could generate some increased momentum for his playing time in the final quarter of the regular season. The 2023 28th-overall selection spent the majority of his rookie year developing with the Salt Lake City Stars in the G-League but is beginning to confidently prove he belongs in the pros.
Sensabaugh and the Jazz will have their next game scheduled on the road come Saturday as they take on the reigning champion Denver Nuggets.
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