Lauri Markkanen scored a career-high 51 points with 14 rebounds to carry the Utah Jazz to a 138-134 overtime victory over the visiting Phoenix Suns on Monday night in Salt Lake City.
Markkanen made 17 of 17 free throws, including a game-clinching pair with 1.9 seconds left, en route to his fourth career 40-point game after scoring 38 vs. the Kings on Friday. He also hit 6 of 13 3-pointers.
It was the first 50-point game in the regular season for a Jazz player since Karl Malone in 1998.
Keyonte George totaled 26 points with 10 assists, while Walker Kessler added 25 points, 11 rebounds, four assists and four blocks. Both made big plays in the waning moments of OT as the Jazz won for the second time in three games to begin the season.
Devin Booker led the Suns with 34 points, including five 3-pointers, but Phoenix wrapped up a three-game road trip with its third straight loss despite overturning a 20-point deficit.
Mark Williams had 25 points and 11 boards off the bench for Phoenix, and Grayson Allen chipped in with 23 points and Roye O’Neal added 17.
Utah took a five-point lead in the overtime, but the Suns, as they had done all game, roared back with an 8-0 run to go up by three on a drive by Allen.
George and Markkanen helped Utah take the lead again at 134-133 with two free throws apiece. After a Williams free throw tied it, George hit a tiebreaking floater and Kessler snagged a key defensive rebound, leading to Markkanen’s clinching free throws.
Phoenix trailed by 12 in the fourth and by six with 11 seconds remaining in regulation before forcing overtime.
Markkanen gave the Jazz a six-point lead with 17.9 seconds left. Booker cut that lead in half with a 3-pointer at the 10.7 mark. The Suns then successfully challenged a call and won the ensuing jump ball, leading to free throws for Booker.
Booker made the first and missed the second, but Phoenix forced overtime by crashing the boards, with Williams tipping in an O’Neale miss with under two seconds to go after O’Neale grabbed Booker’s missed free throw.
Markkanen scored 20 points in the first half to lead the Jazz to a 64-61 halftime lead.
The Jazz jumped ahead 27-7, but the Suns chipped away at the lead, pulling within 12 by the end of the first quarter and trailing by just three at halftime.
