Quickley’s 34 points help Raptors top lowly Jazz

TORONTO – Immanuel Quickley scored a season-high 34 points to lead the Toronto Raptors in a wire-to-wire win over the Utah Jazz 118-109 on Friday.

Quickley added five rebounds and five assists to help Toronto (21-42) win its third straight. Scottie Barnes had a double-double with 22 points and 12 boards, with six assists.

Walker Kessler had a double-double with 18 points and 25 boards as the Western Conference-worst Utah (15-48) dropped its fourth straight game.

Collin Sexton added 17 points and Kyle Filipowski came off the bench for 17 points, five rebounds and three assists.

Raptors rookie guard Ja’Kobe Walter had 14 points, five rebounds and two assists before leaving the game in the third quarter after straining his right quad.

Walter joined a long list of Toronto players who were unavailable for the game.

RJ Barrett (rest) of Mississauga, Ont., Jakob Poeltl (rest), Ochai Agbaji (left ankle sprain), Gradey Dick (right knee bone bruise), Jonathan Mogbo (nasal fracture) and Montreal’s Chris Boucher (dental) were some of Toronto’s other regulars who didn’t play.

Utah was similarly undermanned, with Jordan Clarkson (plantar fasciitis, left foot), John Collins (back), Elijah Harkless (groin), Taylor Hendricks (fractured right fibula and dislocated ankle), and Lauri Markkanen (back) all out.

Takeaways

Jazz: Although Utah never led in the game, its interior offence thrived. The Jazz finished with 60 points in the paint and 20 second-chance points led by Kessler’s 13 offensive rebounds.

Raptors: Constant pressure defence paid dividends for the Raptors, generating 25 Jazz turnovers that led to 28 points for the hosts. Toronto also took excellent care of the ball with just 10 turnovers leading to 12 points.

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Key moment

Keyonte George’s floating jumper with 4:42 left in the game pulled Utah to within six points but Quickley replied with back-to-back 25-foot three-pointers to restore Toronto’s comfortable lead.

Key stat

Kessler’s 25 rebounds were four shy of the most boards ever by a Raptors opponent. Hall of Famer Dikembe Mutombo had 29 rebounds to lead the Atlanta Hawks past Toronto 102-97 on Jan. 31, 2001.

Up next

Toronto hosts the Wizards (12-49) on Saturday in the first of two games against Washington at Scotiabank Arena.

Utah continues its East Coast swing with a stop in Philadelphia on Sunday to face the 76ers (21-41).

This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 7, 2025.

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