The Minnesota Timberwolves have now defeated the Houston Rockets for the third time this season. This was the last meeting of these two teams (in the regular season) as the Wolves win the season series 3-1. The Timberwolves frontcourt was key in this one as Pekovic & Love combined for 63pts, 29rebs, 3stls, 5blks, shot 24-36 FG (67%) and played a combined 84 minutes! Total domination by the Wolves frontcourt that's beginning to look like one of the better 4, 5 combos in the League! It was kept close through the first two quarters. The Wolves were up just one-point after one quarter and they held a 7 point lead (61-54) through the first half. Then, the Timberwolves (definitely a second-half team) took over in the the third quarter and were able to push the lead to 17 points at one point! The Timberwolves went on a big run to grab that lead. But this one became a game of runs. The Rockets went on one of their own, so much so that they cut the Wolves' lead to just one point. The TWolves never gave up the lead and quickly answered to finish the game on a 16-4 run to win this one by 13! The Timberwolves moved to one game under .500, 15-16 and one game over .500, 7-6 on the road this season! The Rockets move to 17-14 this season, which still keeps them ahead of Minnesota in the Western Conference. The Rockets also fell to 11-4 at home (two of those losses to the Wolves). During that fourth quarter Kevin Love showed why he is the NBA's best power forward. He scored the first 12 points of the quarter for the Wolves and finished with 14 of the Wolves' 20 final quarter points! Rubio added 4 & Pek had 2. The Rockets had five of their players reach double figures with impressive performances from Parsons (18pts, 6rebs, 3ast), Lee (17pts, 2rebs, 1ast, 2stls) & Lowry (17pts, 3rebs, 6ast). Scola had a bad night with just 10pts & 4rebs on 5-of-13 shooting and the Rocket's best player, Martin, finished with 16pts, 3ast, 1stl on 4-of-11 shooting. When Martin has big games, the Rockets usually grab the win--tonight Minnesota held him to just 6pts in the final three quarters (none in the fourth quarter) after Martin had 10pts in the first quarter. For the TWolves, beyond Love & Pek, Rubio had a big game. Rubio scored 18pts, 2rebs, 9ast, 1stl. Ridnour also added 9pts, 6rebs, 6ast, 1stl. Even Wes Johnson performed well. He had 9pts, 5rebs, 3ast, 2blks, shot 4-of-6 FG in 29 minutes, while posting a +23 +/-. The Timberwolves had 13 active players, but played just 8 total players. Off the bench came three players: Martell Webster (3pts, 1ast, 1blk), Beasley (6pts, 2rebs, 3ast, 2stls, 3-7 FG), Williams (3pts, 1-2 FG). One of the Timberwolves main reserves (J.J. Barea) didn't play tonight, here's why: http://mnwolves.weebly.com/1/post/2012/02/jj-out-vs-houston-11712.html Tonight it was all about ball movement. Guys were 'swinging the ball' finding the open man and hitting the easy, open shots! The Wolves finished with 24 assists, but did still turn the ball over 19 times. 6 turnovers came in the third quarter, another 6 came in the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves crushed the Rockets on the boards 44-26. The Rockets got back in the game with their three-point shooting. They shot an impressive 50% from deep (10-20), compared to Minnesota's 5-15 from deep. That's all for now. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES!
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The Minnesota Timberwolves will have their fourth and final meeting with the Houston Rockets, Friday night in Houston at the Toyota Center. The Timberwolves currently sit at 14-16 on the season and 6-6 away from the Target Center. The Rockets are 17-13 and are currently 11-3 at home.
Since their last meeting on Feb. 4th. Both teams have played six games. The Wolves are 2-4 over that time, while the Rockets went 4-2. The Minnesota Timberwolves' last game was that win over the Charlotte Bobcats, in which they erupted for 30 third quarter points while holding Charlotte to just 18. Love had 30pts & 18rebs, Pek added 21pts, 11rebs, 3blks and Barea had 12pts, 8ast off the bench. The Houston Rockets' last game was a win over the Oklahoma City Thunder. The Rockets prevailed in the final seconds. Kevin Durant threw up three shots in the final 16 seconds of play, the Rockets finally rebounded the last shot and came away victorious with a 96-95 win. Martin had 32pts on 10-18 from the field, 4-7 from three and a perfect 8-8 from the line, Chandler Parsons added 14pts, 7rebs, 2stls and Lowry had 11pts, 4rebs, 9ast & 2stls. The Wolves & Rockets have already played each other three times this season. Minnesota will be looking to win the season series with a victory. While the Rockets will be looking to tie the season series with a victory. This game could get interesting. If you remember, in the last meeting Kevin Love stomped on the face/chest of Luis Scola after knocking him to the floor. Love received a two-game suspension. Love said that after the game he & Scola talked in the locker room and later that night had drinks to clear the air. I wouldn't expect any further incident. But, I'll be watching that matchup closely! Kevin Love is averaging 31.0ppg vs. the Rockets this season and will look to continue his dominance and I don't see any reason why he wouldn't. The last time these two teams played in Houston, Love scored 39pts! According to AccuScore, Houston are the favorites by five points. I, of course don't agree, but I can guarantee it'll be a close, physical and fun game to watch! Neither team has any significant injuries. The Wolves are still without Malcolm Lee as he rehabs his knee, that he says is currently at 90%. He's likely facing another D-League stint soon, but he hasn't played yet this season. Darko Milicic was recovering from a sprained ankle. He played 4 minutes vs. Orlando on Monday and had 1 block & 3 fouls, in the last game vs. Charlotte he didn't get off the bench (listed as a did not play-coach's decision). I wonder if Darko isn't playing because of an injury or if he's been worked out of the rotation... If the Wolves want to win, they need to stop Kevin Martin. K-Mart is easily their best scorer. In their last meeting, though: he finished with just 2pts on 1-of-10 shooting. Love should have no problem with Scola. So the last key matchup is definitely Rubio vs. Lowry. Kyle Lowry is a triple-double threat every game out, he may not score in bunches every game out (averaging 14.8ppg), but his assists, rebounding & defense is what could easily make him a leading candidate for Most Improved Player of the Year. That's all I've got for now. Tipoff is set for 7pmCT, enjoy the game and check back with us for a full gameday recap following the final horn. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Timberwolves overcame a slow first half. They turned up both the D & the O, that propelled Minnesota to a 12-point win over a Charlotte Bobcats team that hasn't had a victory in 32 days, with their franchise-record losing streak reaching 16 games. Minnesota rode the 'hot hand(s)' of their frontcourt (Love & Pek) who combined for 51pts (half the teams points), 29rebs (all but 17 of the team's rebounds) and 21-of-38 shooting from the field (55%). The Charlotte Bobcats got off to a hot start as they scored 30 points in the opening quarter. They had just 60 points in the final three quarters. Minnesota was down by two points at half; 48-46. Then the Timberwolves validated that their a second half team this season. They pushed the lead to 10 points after three quarters and Rick Adelman actually kept his starters in until 1:52 left in the fourth quarter--he then, finally took out Love & Ridnour and brought in Tolliver & Ellington. Kevin Love had his double-double in the second quarter with 1:40 left in the half (18pts & 10rebs). That made his 4th first half double-double of the season and the 22nd of his career. He also grabbed his 10th 30-10 game of the season as well as his 12th career 30-15 game (got that with 9 minutes to go in the fourth quarter). K-Love wasn't the only TWolf setting new highs. J.J. Barea had 8 assists which is a season-high and Pekovic obtained his 4th 20-10 game of the season! Charlotte got good performances from a number of players. Walker finished with 21pts, 6rebs & 2ast. Maggette had 18pts & 3rebs and Boris Diaw had the best all-around game for the 'Cats tonight, finishing with 14pts, 9rebs, 7ast and 3stls. Everything seemed to be clicking in the second half as Minnesota's defense led to offense and they went on a big run to put away the hapless Bobcats. Though, the first half was a good battle. Something expected from a team who hasn't won a game in over a month! Minnesota moves to 14-16 on the season. They snapped that nasty four-game losing streak as well as a three-game home losing streak. The Timberwolves finished with just 13 team turnovers. A HUGE improvement considering they had games of 28, 23 & 18 there past three outings! That's all I've got for now. If you haven't already, check out our addition to the stats page on this site, we now have the team highs & lows for the Wolves and their opponents! TWolves did set a new season-high in assists with 26 tonight! Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Charlotte Bobcats are riding a franchise-record 15-game losing streak. The Timberwolves are riding a season-high 4-game losing streak. Wednesday's matchup with Charlotte seems to be the ideal game for the Wolves to get back on track!
The Bobcats have won five straight over the Minnesota Timberwolves, but this isn't as talented a Bobcat team as a year ago and this is a different TWolves team. The odds to seem to tip in favor of Minnesota. The Wolves' last win over Charlotte came on March 14, 2009, with a final: 108-100. The Bobacats have won just three games this season, while losing another 25! The Timberwolves have won thirteen games this season, but since reaching a record of 13-12 (moving above .500), the Wolves have dropped four straight. A big part of the Bobcats' struggles this season are injuries to some of their best players. Corey Maggette missed 19 games between January 6th to February 7th with a strained left hamstring. He returned in the Bobcats' last game vs. the 76ers and scored 22 points. Point Guard D.J. Augustin has been out since January 22nd with a toe injury. Shooting Guard Gerald Henderson has missed 7 of the last 10 games, dealing with hamstring & back injuries. Those three guys right there are the team's starting guards and small forward, so, it's no wonder the Bobcats have won just 3 games this year. Bobcats head coach Paul Silas has said that Augustin will likely play vs. the TWolves. Gerald Henderson isn't expected back on Wednesday, however. I'd expect a starting lineup for the Charlotte Bobcats of either D.J. Augustin or Kemba Walker as the starting point guard, Reggie Williams, Corey Maggette, Boris Diaw or Tyrus Thomas at power forward and either DeSagana Diop or Bismack Biyombo at center. That really leaves things open, huh? With either D.J. or Kemba, it just depends if Silas decides D.J. should instantly return to the starting lineup, or he may decide to start them both to match up with the Timberwolves' starting point guards backcourt (Luke was at practice on Tuesday and is expected to remain a starter). At the power forward and center, it just depends on how Charlotte feels they can match up with Minnesota's frontcourt of Love & Pekovic. I'd expect a starting frontcourt of Thomas & Diop. That seems to be a good matchup, with an athletic big like Thomas on Love and another big body on the Wolves' emerging star center: PEK! The Timberwolves recalled Malcolm Lee from the D-League and he participated in his first practice with the team on Tuesday (2/14). Lee says the knee is at about 90%, but does still swell up some. Adelman says he won't be playing with the Wolves anytime soon and almost certainly sees another stint in the D-League in his future as he tries to work back into playing shape and learning Adelman's offense. If Minnesota doesn't win this one, I'd begin to hit the panic button. If we can't defeat a team that has just three wins all season long, we may never win a game again. It's hard, almost, not to look past this game. To almost chalk it up as a win. However, if the players come in with that kind of attitude, the Bobcats are a very capable team of bringing them back down to earth VERY quickly and sending Minnesota to a 5th straight loss. Like they say: "Any Given Night!" The Wolves just need to get back to playing basketball. The shots haven't been falling which is leading to guys trying to do too much--which then leads to some of the gaudy turnover numbers we've seen the past few games. Remain confident in your team and execute the offense, that's really all you can ask for. A defensive stop or two would help as well, of course. That's all for now. Enjoy the game and check back in with us at the final horn for a gameday recap, pictures, videos & stats from the game. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! Welcome to the longest losing streak this season for the Minnesota Timberwolves as they've now dropped their fourth straight game! The Timberwolves dropped this one 89-102 in Orlando, as all five of the Magic starters (Nelson, J. Richardson, Turkoglu, Anderson, Howard) scored in double digits as did reserve J.J. Redick. The Wolves also had five players in double figures (starters: Love, Pekovic, Rubio; reserves: Beasley & Barea). This is the Magic's seventh straight victory and their ninth win in eleven games over the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Timberwolves cut back (slightly) on turnovers, with JUST 18 tonight. Far too many, but at least it was 23 (like vs. NYK) or 28 (like vs. DAL) their last two games. They did allow 17 points off those turnovers. The Timberwolves were down 20 points at one point in the game, but were able to cut the lead to single-digits in the fourth quarter on a run sparked by Beasley & Barea. The Magic quickly responded and closed out the Wolves for their 18th win of the season. The Timberwolves moved to 13-16 on the season, the Wolves move to 6-6 on the road (still .500 someone, I suppose). The Timberwolves will next host the Charlotte Bobcats on Wednesday--hoping to break this losing streak. The Timberwolves are now 3-9 against Eastern Conference teams, compared to 10-7 vs. Western Conference teams this season. The Timberwolves were without starter Luke Ridnour who was away from the team for 'personal reasons'. In his place Martell Webster got the start. Webster finished with just 5pts, 4rebs, 2tos, 2fls, shot 1-for-4 from the field and hit 3-of-4 from the line in 23 minutes. It was also Darko's first game back after missing 8 of the Wolves' last 10 games. He played just 4 minutes and had 1blk & 3fls off the bench. Malcolm Lee is done with his stint in the D-League and is expected to join the team when they return home--could, potentially make his debut Wednesday vs. the Bobcats. Let's take a look at some of tonight's key players from tonight's game...
The Timberwolves got good play from their starting big men. Love & Pekovic combined for 35pts, 28rebs and shot 47%. The rest of the team finished with 54pts, 15rebs and shot 38%! Pek played physical defense against the best center in the NBA. Pek had just 1 foul in 33 minutes! While the Wolves forced Dwight Howard into 5 fouls of his own, which allowed him to play just 28 minutes. Howard finished with just 11pts, 7rebs, 2ast, 1stl, 1to, he also shot just 4-of-11 from the field! Ricky Rubio had an okay game, though his 5 turnovers were 5 too many. Rubio & Barea combined for 22pts, 9ast & 12tos.
For the Magic it was a balance attack. Despite their best player struggling to stay out of foul trouble and thus on the floor and struggling to hit very close-range shots, Orlando got big performances from guys like J-Rich, Nelson & J.J. during key quarters. J-Rich had 13 of his 17 points in the third quarter and didn't play the entire final quarter! Nelson had 8 of his 14pts and J.J. had 7 of his 14pts--both in the fourth quarter as the Magic put away the TWolves. That's all for now. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Timberwolves travelled to Orlando on Sunday afternoon--far away from the cold weather of Minneapolis and hopefully far away from how they've played, in their last two games at the Target Center.
In those last two games: 51 turnovers...51! That game vs. Dallas? A league-high for this season: 28 turnovers! My key for this game vs. Orlando? Believe it or not: limit turnovers. That and contain Dwight Howard, of course. The Wolves hope to have Darko Milicic back and Rick Adelman knows they'll need him! Darko's post defense will be critical vs. the best center in the NBA! The sad/bad news? Darko may actually start again! Nikola Pekovic has been playing great in his absence and now he'll be moved to the bench because Darko's a slightly better defender. I don't guarantee he'll start, but if Adelman is saying the Wolves need him back it's VERY possible they'll start him to match up right away with DH in the starting lineup, as well. I'm also pretty excited to see the battle on the boards between the league-leading rebounder: Dwight Howard and the 2nd league-leading rebounder: Kevin Love fight for rebounds. The Magic are 17-11 this season and they're 9-6 at the Amway Center and have won 5 of their last 7 games (both losses coming in games that went to overtime). The Wolves are 13-15 on the year and are 6-5 on the road this season, they're also, currently riding a three-game losing streak, if they lose again--it will be the Wolves' longest losing steak this season: 4. Since Love entered the League in 2008--the Magic have won all six games played vs. the Wolves, the past four years. The Wolves' last game was that two-point loss to the New York Knicks. A full gameday recap of that one can be found in the previous post of this section. I won't get into that one now, though. The Magic's last game was a five-point win over the Milwaukee Bucks. The Magic were able to rally with just five minutes left in the fourth quarter from 10 points down, thanks in large part to an impressive shooting night from Jason Richardson which helped considering DH hit just 5 of his 15 shots and finished with 11pts, 14rebs & 4blks. Richardson finished with 31pts on 11-of-18 shooting. The Timberwolves will likely start a lineup of: Rubio, Ridnour, Johnson, Love & either Pekovic or Milicic (hopefully Pek). The Magic will counter with: Nelson, Richardson, Turkoglu, Anderson & Howard. That's all for now. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! Tonight was the angriest I've been with a Timberwolves loss in a LONG time. I didn't get to mad over close losses the past few seasons because, I went into most games expecting a loss. This year is different and I wanted so badly this Lin-crap to take a nice big hit! I'm gonna be honest. I don't really want to write anything tonight! The #Linsanity is actually driving me insane right now! The guy shot 8-for-24 tonight. NYK broadcasters say: "Oh, it's just an off-night, he's been playing a lot lately." They say he played within himself and didn't force anything: because suddenly shooting 33% and taking 24 attempts to get 20 points isn't forcing it! Everyone wants to thrive on the positives: 20pts, 6rebs, 8ast, 3stls. No one wants to mention that he had 6 turnovers. No one wants to talk about Ricky Rubio's defense on him. No one wants to talk about the fact that he had two wide-open threes and missed both, and shot 0-for-3 from deep. Iman Shumpert was the Knicks' best player tonight, but it's Lin who'll grab headlines. Landry Fields also had a GREAT game, but it's the "Lin Legend" that grows! Let me say this though. I don't hate Jeremy Lin. He's a blossoming player--that's finally getting his chance and thriving in it! What I hate? The hype. The hype, drives me absolutely NUTS! He came out of nowhere, he's strung together a few good games, but there's 29 other teams and 350+ other players in this League. I'm also happy the Wolves only play the Knicks once this season. Now that I'm done ranting let's talk stats...
Everyone's talking about Lin lately. What about Nikola Pekovic?! He's been a MONSTER lately! He's been playing great. There was even a little dust-up with Tyson Chandler when the two had to be separated tonight! I like Pek. He's a solid center and I really pray that Adelman doesn't try to start Darko upon his return...I will REALLY lose it! Love had a great game. His last game against the Knicks was his 31-31 game. Tonight he had 32-21. He's also been GREAT at the line. In his past two games he's gone 24-for-24 from the line! Love & Pek combined to shoot 61% tonight. The rest of the team: 34%! Rubio did well defensively vs. Lin, but his turnover with jsut 4.9 seconds left is ONE of the reasons the Wolves lost tonight. He didn't shoot the ball well, but I think if nothing else...he proved he's a solid defender in this League. Of course all the reporters will take away is: he turned the ball over in the clutch! His only two turnovers came in the final 26 seconds of the game (or 25.9 to be exact).
It wasn't just Lin tonight. Shump, Fields and...Steve Novak? had great games. Steve Novak is a shooting specialist and he thrived in that role tonight. The Knicks' trio of guards came away with 59 of their 100pts tonight. The story for the Wolves? TURNOVERS! TURNOVERS! TURNOVERS! TURNOVERS! The Wolves followed up their 28 turnover game last night vs. the Mavericks with 23 tonight! While allowing New York to score 29pts off of them. If anything, the Wolves were lucky to be in the game. The crunch time lineup for the Wolves was definitely a 'head-scratcher'. Adelman had a lineup of: Rubio, Ridnour, Barea, Love & Pek (Beasley was replaced by Pek with a few minutes to go). Obviously didn't work, Barea struggled playing of the ball--as he does. And gee...I wonder who the ball is going to with a second to go. Will it be Rubio? Ridnour? Barea? Pek? Didn't have your best scorers on the floor with the game on the line. I like Adelman, but I don't understand that...I don't have 21 years of coaching experience, however...until I do, I'll be quiet... That's all for now. Again let me reiterate: I don't hate Jeremy Lin. I hate the hype. It's been just a week and it's driving me crazy. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Timberwolves will be hosting Jeremy Lin and his New York Knicks tonight at the Target Center. The Wolves will be wearing their Minnesota Muskies jerseys again--after wearing them last night vs. the Mavericks. Let's be honest, if the the TWolves come out and play like they did against the Mavericks last night, you can chalk up another big game for Jeremy Lin and another win for the New York Knicks. Like every other NBA fan, I'm curious to see if Jeremy Lin is actually the 'real deal'. He dropped a career-high 38pts on the Lakers last night. Sure the Lakers aren't as good as they were a year ago, but that's still a playoff-bound basketball team. Let's get through all this Jeremy Lin talk, so we can get to the rest of the preview. Let's look at Lin's past four games as a starter...
Yeah, we all know before his breakout game the Knicks were very close to cutting Lin (before his contract became guaranteed). Lin was up against the likes of Deron Williams, Devin Harris, John Wall & Derek Fisher his past four games. Tonight Ricky Rubio will get the task of trying to guard a player on a HOT STREAK! Ricky's an underrated defender, we'll see if he can slow down this #Linsanity! I'd love for the Wolves to be the team J-Lin has an off-game against! In Lin's four starts as the Knicks' starting point guard they've gone 4-0. Before those games. The Knicks had lost 11 of their previous 13 games!
I watched some highlights from Lin's games vs. the Nets & the Jazz. He did a lot of slashing to the rim and had a handful of alley-oops to Tyson Chanlder--not too hard for a 7-footer, lob it up, let him catch it. Want a fun fact?: Lin has gained 115,000 followers on Twitter this past week! I can't even break 50! I need a couple 25-point games myself, I suppose... All right enough with the Lin-talk, let's actually discuss Wolves vs. Knicks... 1.) The Knicks will be without Amar'e Stoudemire who is with his family after his brother was killed in a car accident, he won't be back with the team until Monday. Carmelo Anthony has a groin injury that'll keep him out for at least 1-2 weeks. The Knicks are without their two stars, but they've still got Chandler & the phenom-Lin! 2.) Without Amar'e & Melo, the Knicks have started a lineup of: Jeremy Lin, Bill Walker, Landry Fields, Jared Jeffries & Tyson Chandler. Doesn't, in any way, shape or form, look like a formidable starting lineup. Though--no doubt, it's been effective. 3.) I'll admit the Wolves seem to have a very good chance of winning this one. I can't see the Knicks being able to slow down Kevin Love. Unless maybe the Knicks put Tyson Chandler on him, but then that leaves Jeffries to deal with the bruiser: Pek! The Knicks will also have to deal with the Wolves' depth coming off the bench: Beasley, D-Will, Webster, Barea, etc. 4.) I pray the Wolves will come in 'hungry'. Following an absolutely dreadful game vs. the Mavericks last night--if Minnesota comes out with no energy or effort, the result will likely be the same. The Wolves' very careless control with the basketball, they'll easily rack up the turnovers, the Knicks will rack up the points and the Timberwolves will take the loss! 5.) Matchups to watch. Lin vs. Rubio & Tyson vs. Pek! The Knicks' two best players (right now), vs. two young and rising stars (well, at least Rubio will be playing in the Rising Stars game at All-Star weekend). 6.) The Timberwolves need production from their starters! Let's be honest: Wesley Johnson & Luke Ridnour may be the problems right now. Luke has strung together back-to-back games that have been quite unimpressive! He's scored a total of 7pts the past two games and has been easily taken advantage of--vs. MEM (by Quincy Pondexter) and last night vs. DAL (by Vince Carter). The mismatches that a two-guard backcourt creates is beginning to become a real Achilles Heal. As for Wes--he belongs in the D-League! He's not playing like a 4th overall pick and he's being/been given the starting job from day one...never earning it! My opinon? Start Martell Webster & Michael Beasley--I won't/don't guarantee it'll work, BUT I don't doubt the starting lineup needs a change! The Wolves started the game, by letting the Mavericks go up 20-6 last night! Need further proof? Check out every first quarter the past few weeks--not exactly impressive basketball! That's what's been killing the Timberwolves--slow starts! 7.) All in all: limit turnovers: be smart with the basketball, contain Lin and go out there and play like you want to win! ENERGY & EFFORT! That's all for now. I really do hope the Wolves hold Lin to 4pts, 3ast, 6tos and 1-12 FG. Then, we can move past the #Linsanity, because, to me, it's already gotten VERY OLD this past week. Right up there with the Carmelo Anthony trade rumors last season--never-ending and increasingly irritating! Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Timberwolves had an awful and lifeless four quarters tonight. They were able to get within a few points more than once--but that was quickly followed by a BIG run by the Mavs led by the "Dirk of Old"--clearly returning to form as he plastered 33pts on Minnesota tonight! The Wolves' backcourt again came into to question as Vince Carter just destroyed Luke Ridnour in the first quarter...we'll get to that in a second though. It's games like tonight that you realize a few things: We need a starting shooting guard, Beasley should be starting over Wes, Wes should be playing a few games in the D-League... I took notes during the game and I decided I would write a different kind of recap tonight. I'm not sure it'll be something we do every game, but it's more fun than the same old routine recap game after game after game. So, hope you enjoy.... FIRST QUARTERJason Kidd was in the starting lineup after missing about a week or so with a calf injury. Darko is still out with a sprained ankle (did have 7blks the last time these two played 1/25). The Mavericks started Kidd, Carter, Marion, Nowitzki & Haywood. The Wolves countered with Rubio, Ridnour, Johnson, Love & Pekovic. Clearly we see trouble brewing in that backcourt mismatch already... Timberwolves are wearing their Minnesota Muskies jerseys again...obviously not kind to the Wolves as they're now 0-2 this season. Luke Ridnour starts off guarding Vince Carter. Dallas had no trouble taking advantage, VC took it at him and Ridnour got two quick fouls. The Wolves then went to a zone. Dallas missed their next two shots...and then hit their next three of four. The Timberwolves COULD NOT score. Mavericks jump out to an early 20-6 lead with four minutes to go in the first quarter. Pek had six of the TWolves' first eight points. A quick stat: the TWolves have won three games this season after trailing by 10+ points at some point in the game. Pek started the game 3/4 from the field. The rest of the team started 1/10. Dallas up 20-8 with 7:50 left in the 1st quarter. The Timberwolves finish the half with 7 turnovers which led to 12 Dallas points! The Wolves also shot 33% (6-18) compared to the Mavs' 48% (11-23). AFTER ONE: 29-16 Dallas second quarterMinnesota playing a bit better. Limiting turnovers, scoring some--but still not defending the Mavericks well--way too many fast break hoops. Four players account for all of Minnesota's 29pts. Love (9), Pek (8), Beas (7), Webster (5)--before two free throws from Barea with 7 minutes left in the half. I've counted at least 6 or 7 fast break--almost "cherry-pickin'" buckets for the Mavericks. 2 or 3 passes have sailed out-of-bounds though too. Always one Mav, streaking downcourt for easy lay-ins off the insane number of Wolves TOs! Read on Twitter: "J.J. knows he's not playing for Dallas anymore, right?"--very casual and careless with the ball--like most of the Wolves players tonight! Watching the broadcast on FSN. Jim Peterson pretty much sums up the game: "When it rains it pours!"--Absolutely NOTHING going right for the T-Pups! Sloppy, Ugly Basketball tonight! Inbound play with four seconds to go is nearly stolen, but tipped out of bounds. MIN takes a timeout--their play out of the timeout? Rubio gets trapped passes to Barea who's blocked by VC...I doubt that was the play coming out of the timeout. Awful execution (the story of the night!) Clearly the Mavs have no intention of being swept by the TWolves this season. Wolves not playing like they want it...Mavs are--ultimately the difference! Love at halftime: "...we need to come out with more energy in the second half..."--no kidding! AT HALFTIME: Dallas up 56-45. TWolves lucky to be within 11pts they way they've been playing tonight. KEY STATS: 14 MIN turnovers in the first half, leading to 18 Mavericks points! TWolves also shot just 1-10 in the first half (0-6 in the second quarter). KEY PLAYERS MIN: Love w/17pts, 4rebs, 4-10 FG, 9-9 FT in 20 min. Pek w/8pts, 2rebs, 1blk, 4-7 FG in 13 min. DAL: Dirk w/16pts, 2rebs, 3ast, 1blk, 5-7 FG, 3-4 3PT, 3-3 FT in 16 min. third quarterThese first few possessions/minutes will be VERY important for Minnesota to set a tone for the entire quarter. TWolves come out quick. Love scores two quick buckets to make it 56-49 with 11 minutes to go in the quarter. SURPRISE! SURPRISE! Dallas goes right back to that Vince Carter/Luke Ridnour mismatch. Wes fouls VC from behind--sends him to the line for two. There's a VERY GOOD physical battle down low between two bruisers: Pek & Haywood. Wolves open quarter on an 8-2 run. Makes it 58-53 with 9 minutes to go!! Dirk quickly heats up and answers with two quick baskets. Now with 20pts. Fuels a Mavericks 9-0 run to make it 67-53. Dirk scores 7 of those 9! TWolves have the lead cut to just 5pts--now Dallas up 17! 71-54. Debating switching to the Lakers-Knicks game... LOVE HURT?! Turns out he just hit his funnybone is all. Seemed awful dramatic for only hitting your funnybone... Consecutive corner threes from Beas cuts it to 75-62 with two minutes to go in the third. TWolves with a lineup of Rubio, Barea, Beas, D-Will & Love on the floor--trying to rally back. A 9-0 run by the Wolves including 4 of 4 made free throws from Rubio during that stretch makes it 68-75 with 55 seconds to go. Mismatch on a switch. D. West goes right around Love for a reverse layup. Love responds at the other end with an AND ONE, three-point play! Quarter ends on a VICIOUS TIP-SLAM from Derrick Williams who seemingly comes out of nowhere! Cuts the Mavericks lead to 5; 78-73! END of THIRD: 78-73 Dallas leads. KEY STATS: The Mavericks have forced the Wolves into 19 turnovers. They also have 11 steals. The TWolves have also forced the Mavs into 14 turnovers--though they aren't scoring off them like the Mavericks. The TWolves are also shooting 22-for-25 from the free-throw line--probably what's keeping them in this ball-game! fourth quarterQuarter begins with back-and-forth misses for both teams, before a big POWER move by Pek over Dirk cuts the lead to just 3pts; 78-75. Minnesota on a 17-4 run! Three BIG hoops from the JET (Jason Terry) puts the Mavericks up 87-77 with 8:16 to go in the game. Everytime we make a push the Mavericks answer back with no problem! Don't see us coming back if that continues to be the case... Minnesota was within just 3pts early in the quarter, now an 11-1 run by the Mavs makes it 95-82... CLEARLY THE STORY OF THE NIGHT=TURNOVERS & POINTS OFF TURNOVERS! Stupid, careless basketball. Apparently the TWolves came in thinking: "We've already beat these guys twice, tonight's a cake-walk!" VERY frustrating game... Encouraging stat: The Mavericks are 7-1 when they score 100+ points. They now have 104 and lead by 14. TWolves take out Rubio & Love. This one's in the books. In come Ellington & Tolliver who haven't played all night. They go along with Ridnour, Beasley & D-Will. The Wolves just committed their season-high turnover! This is not fun basketball to watch. Bright Spot?: Beasley still fighting. Scores a mid-range jumper, fights for a rebound underneath on another play and gets the putback. The next possession he nails a three. Is he looking for the win--or is he padding his stats?... Doesn't matter--he seems to be the only TWolf hustling right now. TWolves lose: 104-97. Season series finishes at 2-1 for the Wolves & Mavs. Mavericks have now won 19 of the last 22 meetings! Final notesThe Timberwolves move below .500 again, now 13-14.
The Wolves' 28 turnovers is not only a season-high for the Wolves, but also a League-high. They also allowed 31 points off those TOs...The Mavericks finished with 16 steals as well as 17 fast break points. Love finishes with 32pts, 12rebs, 3ast, on 50% shooting (9-18) FG as well as a perfect 14-of-14 from the free throw line. Pek adds 12pts, 7rebs, on an uncharacteristic 6-of-14 shooting. Beasley adds 20pts, 4rebs, 1stl on 8-of-11 shooting off the bench in 29 minutes. Dirk finishes with 33pts, 4rebs, 3ast, 1stl, 3blks on 11-of-19 shooting (FG) in 35 minutes. Carter adds 12pts & 5stls. Terry finishes with 16pts, 3rebs, 5ast, 2stls in 33 minutes off the bench. That's all for now. Hope you enjoyed the different format. It's kind of a game journal. Good for those who didn't watch the game. If you didn't and you read HOWL, you know we like to try a variety of different recaps--rather than a boring routine format. Feel free to tell us what you think in the comments section or via Twitter @HOWL_MnTWolves. Thanks for reading HOWL and GO WOLVES! The Timberwolves have played the Dallas Mavericks twice already this season (both in the month of January) and it resulted in two wins for your Minnesota Timberwolves. The Mavs will get their final chance at a win over the Wolves at the Target Center on Friday--as this is the third and final meeting of these two teams.
Let's get the RUNDOWN... 1.) In their first meeting was at the Target Center and the Wolves won 99-82 on Jan. 1st. The second was on Jan. 25 in Dallas--on the day the Mavs got their championship rings--the Wolves won that one as well: 105-90. A recap of both those games can be found in previous posts on our site--easily accessible if you click on the "Dallas Mavericks" link under the categories section--to the right of this post. 2.) Although the Timberwolves have defeated the Mavericks twice this season--Dallas still holds the better record. The Mavericks are 15-11 this season, while the Wolves are 13-13. The TWolves will be playing at home and are currently 7-8 at the Target Center this season--they'll have a chance to move to .500 at home on Friday! The Mavs are obviously playing on the road and are 6-6 away from Dallas this season. 3.) News broke on Thursday that both Kevin Love & Dirk Nowitzki will be representing the Western Conference as reserve forwards at the All-Star game later this month in Orlando. Let's be honest though--Kevin Love deserved his spot (likely even the starting forward spot)--while Dirk shouldn't be an All-Star. His performance this season has been the worst of his career and he even admitted before the selections that he believed he didn't deserve to be an All-Star this season. Clearly, this selection was based on prior accomplishments--not this season! 4.) The Timberwolves' last game was an 80-85 loss at the hands of the Memphis Grizzlies. They were without Kevin Love who was serving the second game of his two game suspension--so obviously the good news is that Love will be back! It was just a disappointing game through-and-through! You can find a full gameday recap of that one in the previous post under the "Gameday" section. 5.) The Mavericks' last game was a 105-95 win over the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday. The last time the Wolves played the Mavs they were without Dirk Nowitzki & Vince Carter. They'll be back--AND they had great games vs. the Nuggets on Wednesday. Dirk had 25pts, 9rebs, 3ast, 1stl, 1blk and shot 11-for-20 from the field. Carter had 17pts, 5rebs, 8ast, 2stls, 1blk, and shot 7-for-12 from the field. In that game Dallas had a solid shooting night: 49% from the field (44-90), grabbed 46rebs and had 30ast. With Dirk's 25pts he also moved up to 21st on the all-time NBA scoring list, passing Adrian Dantley! 6.) Before the Timberwolves' loss to the Grizzlies on Wednesday they were riding a three-game winning streak (@NJN, vs. HOU, vs. SAC). Before the Mavericks' win over the Denver Nuggets they were on a three-game losing streak (vs. OKC, vs. IND, @CLE). 7.) It'll be the battle of two All-Star forwards. Both Love & Dirk are the team's best players. Clearly, that'll be the matchup of the night. Love will provide rebounds and plenty of points for a Wolves team that's been lacking these past two games without him. Since Dirk's return from those four games he missed for conditioning he's played six games. His first three games back he had two 10-point games and a game with 8pts. In his last three games he's scored 30pts, 24pts & 25pts. Clearly Dirk is back to being Dirk! Not good news for Wolves fans! 8.) So Dirk is back to being Dirk! But, now Pek 'is' Pek. Pekovic has stepped up in Darko's continued absence and has emerged as the team's starting center and a surprisingly effective one, at that. He's a dominant force in the paint--a very physical & tough big man. He's stepped up his 'game' on both ends of the floor and making the most of every minute he's out on the court. 9.) For the Wolves, they'll be without Malcolm Lee who is recovering from that knee injury and is currently playing in the D-League--he should be with the Wolves sometime next week. There's no word on whether Darko Milicic will be available. He's currently dealing with a sprained ankle. Before that it was a quad contusion and before that he was feeling ill. Who knows if he'll have yet another injury or if he'll actually be available to play... 10.) The Mavericks will be without their veteran point guard: Jason Kidd, who is currently out with a calf injury. Jason Terry is also on the injury report. He's listed as day-to-day with a hip flexor, though he's not expected to miss any time with the injury. That's all for now. We'll have a full gameday recap of this one following the final horn. Tipoff is set for 7pmCT from the Target Center. Thanks for reading HOWL, enjoy the game, and GO WOLVES! |
Cody D. AndersonA Wolves fan bringing you Gameday Recaps all season long! 2014-15 Game ArchivesGameday Archives
December 2015
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