Jazz's Hardy: 'I robbed' Sexton of game-winning try vs. Lakers

Utah Jazz head coach Will Hardy is taking responsibility for calling a timeout that negated Collin Sexton's game-winning layup against the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.

Sexton advanced the ball into the frontcourt after the Jazz forced a Lakers miss while down one point with eight seconds left in the contest. He attempted to get through the defense by backing up and resetting the possession, but Hardy called a timeout as he reached the basket and made the layup. Utah went on to lose 105-104 after Sexton missed a last-second triple.

"We like to let people go in that situation," Hardy said, according to Ryan Miller of KSL.com. "When Collin did a retreat dribble backward, I started calling timeout. It's obviously loud. The hope would have been to have a few more seconds than 2.1. But, yeah, it's tough."

Hardy added: "It's hard because you don't know exactly how it would've ended up had they not blown the whistle and everybody kept playing. Maybe Collin would have finished it. I told (Collin) in the locker room I robbed him of a moment at the end of the game."

Hardy also said Sexton was gracious after the game for his remarks but was frustrated in the moment, according to The Athletic's Tony Jones.

The Jazz lost their fourth straight contest, dropping to 4-16 this season.

Sexton recorded 15 points on 7-of-14 shooting, along with four assists and three rebounds. Lauri Markkanen led the team in scoring with 22 points, while John Collins added 21.

Utah takes on the Oklahoma City Thunder for its final NBA Cup contest Tuesday.