The Utah Jazz (7-25) travel to face off against the Miami Heat (17-15) on Saturday, January 4th. This game will be played at Kaseya Center in Miami and televised on KJZZ. Both the Jazz and Heat will be looking to bounce back from losses in their previous games. Tip off is scheduled for 8:00 ET.

Jazz vs Heat

The Jazz Look To Bounce Back From A Loss

Utah’s season continued to be a struggle as they fell to 7-25 after a 119-103 road loss to the Knicks on Wednesday. The Jazz entered the game as +12 point underdogs and failed to cover the spread. The game’s total of 222 points fell short of the 228-point O/U line.

Utah led 25-24 after the 1st quarter, but a 32-21 2nd quarter in favor of the Knicks put them in a hole. The Jazz outscored the Knicks 33-31 in the 3rd, but New York pulled away in the 4th, outscoring Utah 32-24.

The Heat Look To Bounce Back From A Loss

The Heat dropped to 17-15 on the season after a 128-115 home loss to the Pacers on Thursday. Miami, favored by 2 points, not only lost but failed to cover the spread. The game’s total points of 243.5 exceeded the O/U line of 225.5 by 17.5 points.

Indiana’s 12-0 run early in the game put Miami in a hole, as the Pacers jumped out to a 14-2 lead. The Heat struggled to recover, falling behind 107-83 going into the 4th quarter, despite outscoring the Pacers 32-21 in the final period.

Jazz Offense Breakdown

In their 119-103 loss to the Knicks, the Jazz shot just 40.6% from the field and 30.2% from beyond the arc, hitting 13 threes. Collin Sexton was a bright spot, connecting on 76.9% of his shots and 4-of-5 from deep, finishing with 25 points and 5 assists.

Jordan Clarkson also contributed 25 points, with 12 coming in the 3rd quarter. Lauri Markkanen added 16 points and 10 rebounds, though he shot just 27.3% from the field. Keyonte George chipped in 15 points, including 8 in the opening quarter.

Heat Offense Breakdown

In Thursday’s loss to the Pacers, the Heat shot 57.3% from the field and 42.3% from beyond the arc, hitting 11 three-pointers. Kel’el Ware led the way with 25 points, knocking down 3 threes at a 75% clip and shooting 81.8% overall.

Bam Adebayo added 20 points, and Tyler Herro contributed 17, with 3 made threes. Ware scored 18 of his 25 points in the 4th quarter, while Terry Rozier added 8 of his 16 points in the final period.

Jazz Team Defense

Defensively, the Jazz struggled in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th quarters, giving up 32 points in each of those periods in their 119-103 loss to the Knicks. Utah allowed New York to shoot 55% from the field.

Utah did a good job defending the three, allowing just 9 made threes on 39% shooting. The Jazz sent the Knicks to the line 23 times, where they made 16 free throws. Utah recorded 7 steals and 6 blocks.

Heat Team Defense

Defensively, the Jazz struggled in the 2nd and 4th quarters, giving up 32 points in each, leading to a 119-103 loss to the Knicks. Utah allowed New York to shoot 55% from the field.

Utah did well in limiting the Knicks to just 9 made three-pointers on 39% shooting. The Jazz also sent New York to the line 23 times, where they made 16 free throws. The Jazz recorded 7 steals and 6 blocks.

Jazz vs Heat Trends

• Across their ten previous road games, Utah has an ATS mark of 5-5. Their straight up record in these matchups was 3-7 while averaging 113 points per game.
• Although Miami has a straight up record of 4-6 in their last ten home games, they have not held up as well vs the spread going 3-7. The team averaged 107 points per game in these games.
• Looking back on the team’s last five games as the underdog, the Jazz have a straight up record of 0-5. Their record vs the spread in these games was 3-2.
• The last ten games that Miami was favored, they have an ATS mark of 5-5 while going 7-3 straight up.

Jazz vs Heat Prediction

Coming in as the underdogs at +8.5, we have the Jazz as the way to go on the point spread. Not only do we have them covering, but our projections show they have a good one of winning this one straight-up, if you’re looking for a higher payout on the moneyline.

As for the over/under, the the line is currently at 223.5, and our model projects the Jazz and Heat to reach a combined total of 250 points. Our bet is on taking the over.

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All odds are courtesy of Action247 Sportsbook. Good luck!!

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* All odds are provided by Action247 Sportsbook and all odds subject to change.**All views expressed are my own. My picks are my own and are not a guarantee, bet at your own risk.Action247 does not warrant the accuracy of completeness of the information, text, graphics, links or other items contained within these post.