Game Four Grades: Spurs 87, Jazz 81

May 7, 2012; Salt Lake City, UT, USA; Utah Jazz power forward Paul Millsap (24) goes to the basket over San Antonio Spurs shooting guard Stephen Jackson (3) during the second half of game four in the Western Conference quarterfinals of the 2012 NBA Playoffs at EnergySolutions Arena. The Spurs defeated the Jazz 87-81 to sweep Utah and win the series. Mandatory Credit: Russ Isabella-US PRESSWIRE

The Utah Jazz were desperate. Tyrone Corbin made a tactical adjustment prior to the game that bolstered the starting lineup, inserting Derrick Favors.

Favors responded well, totaling 16 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks in 37:25.

Utah went on a 23-11 run in the fourth quarter, but that wasn’t nearly enough to make up for three quarters of basketball. Utah finished the season with a 36-34 record.

James Anderson, SG 0:12 MIN | 0-0 FG | 0-0 FT | 0 REB | 0 AST | 0 PTS | -2

I didn’t realize he even played. Grade: Incomplete

DeJuan Blair, C  6:56 MIN | 2-2 FG | 2-4 FT | 3 REB | 0 AST | 6 PTS | -2

Surprised he got some time but he was generally in the right place at the right time. Grade: C

Matt Bonner, PF 20:03 MIN | 1-4 FG | 2-3 FT | 4 REB | 1 AST | 5 PTS | +20

Plus/minus anomaly strikes again. Grade: C+

Boris Diaw, PF 20:42 MIN | 0-1 FG | 0-0 FT | 4 REB | 2 AST | 0 PTS | -12

Scored as many points as James Anderson and Patrick Mills despite logging 20 more minutes. I did like a play he made in the third quarter that set up a corner 3-pointer for Kawhi. Grade: C

Tim Duncan, C 27:40 MIN | 4-10 FG | 3-3 FT | 5 REB | 1 AST | 11 PTS | -13

Didn’t score in the second half but he did surpass Shaquille O’Neal in the record books. I’m bumping him up to B just for that reason alone. Grade: B-

Manu Ginobili, SG 26:42 MIN | 6-11 FG | 2-4 FT | 4 REB | 1 AST | 17 PTS | -2

He knows how to control the tenor of the game. Grade: A

Danny Green, G 24:52 MIN | 1-5 FG | 2-2 FT | 4 REB | 2 AST | 5 PTS | +16

Ehhhhh. Grade: C

Stephen Jackson, SG 26:23 MIN | 2-5 FG | 2-2 FT | 6 REB | 1 AST | 8 PTS | +12

Did everything he needed to, especially rebounding the ball. Per HoopData, Jack is the Spurs’ fourth best defensive rebounder. Grade: B

Kawhi Leonard, SF 20:06 MIN | 1-7 FG | 0-0 FT | 5 REB | 0 AST | 3 PTS | -6

Struggling. In 11 of his last 20 games, Kawhi hasn’t recorded one single free throw attempt. I would like to see his free throw increase next series. Grade: C-

Patrick Mills, PG 0:12 MIN | 0-0 FG | 0-0 FT | 0 REB | 0 AST | 0 PTS | -2

See Anderson, James. Grade: Incomplete

Gary Neal, PG 18:29 MIN | 4-6 FG | 2-2 FT | 3 REB | 1 AST | 11 PTS | +13

Another low key performance. Grade: B+

Tony Parker, PG 27:16 MIN | 4-14 FG | 2-5 FT | 3 REB | 3 AST | 11 PTS | -13

This time, M-V-P chants were not necessary. The extent of Parker’s damage was one 3-pointer. Other than that … not much. Grade: C

Tiago Splitter, C 20:28 MIN | 3-9 FG | 4-5 FT | 2 REB | 0 AST | 10 PTS | +21

Although I wish Splitter’s rebounding would improve — he averaged 3.7 rebounds for the series — he still makes a difference in other aspects of the game. Grade: B+

Conclusion. I was getting a little worried towards the end of the game as the Spurs floundered their possessions and the Jazz made the most of theirs. It was a nice effort but a futile one nonetheless. With seasoning, this Jazz team has some potential.