HOUSTON -- Isolated at the top of the key, Donovan Mitchell settled into a defensive squat with the expected MVP lining him up with crossovers and between-the-legs moves. James Harden rocked back-and-forth, his beard bobbing up and down, and sensing Mitchell leaning ever so slightly, he started a hard drive left, and Mitchell reached. Maybe it was self-preservation so as not to get roasted, but it smelled of a rookie rookie-ing -- losing discipline in only the briefest of moments -- and it cost him his fourth foul with 6:40 to go.

The Rockets inbounded the ball from the sideline and went right back to Harden, who forced another switch on Mitchell. The rookie squatted into his stance, holding his arms almost comically to his sides, shuffling against the grain as Harden tried to drive him. Mitchell cut off the move, and Harden backed out and Mitchell closed the gap. Shot clock violation.

On the Jazz's next trip, Mitchell -- struggling through an ugly shooting night -- missed a floater in the paint, but with a second jump as if a hidden trampoline existed somewhere under the floor, he exploded back at the rim and crammed home a vicious tip dunk. After a Harden runner cut Utah's lead back to four, Mitchell came right back, gliding into the paint after a high screen, and calmly hit Joe Ingles right in his pocket for a wide-open corner 3 to put the Jazz up seven.

It was a sequence of consequence, and another to highlight Mitchell's outrageous poise and ability. The tip dunk was the highlight of the game, and even had a great quote to go with it ("I just happened to be up there," Mitchell said, "so I figured why come down with it?"), but the entire series of plays showcased what makes Mitchell so special. He didn't play all that well, at least in the traditional box score sense -- 17 points on 6-of-21 shooting -- but he made plays, and taking over the primary playmaking role again, he dished out a career-high 11 assists to even the Western Conference semifinal series at 1 with a 116-108 win on Wednesday night.