The game looked out of reach in the final moments, but two crunch-time treys from rookie Kyle Filipowski gave the Utah Jazz a glimmer of hope Sunday versus the Philadelphia 76ers.
Ultimately, though, it was the Sixers who came out on top in a 126-122 win.
Even so, Filipowski’s coolness under pressure was on full display in a game wherein he led the Jazz with 25 points — matching his career-high — to go with seven rebounds, three assists and three steals.
After trailing by as many as 22 points in the fourth quarter, the Jazz stormed back to make a game of it against the Sixers and wouldn’t have been able to pull off as much of a comeback as they did without the two ATO 3s hit by Filipowski with less than 10 seconds left to play.
“To shoot those two late as quickly as he did, it shows that the work’s paying off,” Jazz head coach Will Hardy said. “I’ve said before, and I’ll say it again, Flip deserves all the credit, because he’s the one that’s doing the work.
“It’s not just the physical work but it’s mentally taxing too, to do what he’s doing and to stick with it even when you miss, so I’m really proud of his effort.”
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What made the clutch shots more impressive was how the game unfolded for Filipowski. The rookie’s night started out with a scorching first quarter, as he scored 12 points on 4 of 5 shooting.
But through the second and third quarter, Filipowski went just 1 of 5 from the field and found himself in foul trouble. There was every reason in the world for him to feel timid, insecure and unsure in the fourth quarter.
Instead of giving into any of those feelings, he stepped up to take on a huge role in the Jazz’s comeback and proved that he isn’t going to be someone that crumbles in pressure situations.
It’s just one game, but all of those small moments are huge in being predictors of what kind of potential is lying underneath the surface for some of the young Jazz players.
“I’m proud of the work that he’s put in,” Hardy said. “He shot the ball well to start the game, and then went through a stretch where he got some really good catch-and-shoot looks and just didn’t make them.
“That’s life in the NBA ... but I think that Flip’s development of his shot is definitely one of the highlights of this year for us. I look forward to continuing to try to help him grow and put him in some different positions to see if we can maximize that even more.”
The Jazz continue their five-game roadtrip with a back-to-back game in Boston Monday night before finishing the away-from-home swing in Memphis on Wednesday.