Timberwolves Wrap: Yet another bad loss…
By Ben Beecken
The Timberwolves lost to the lowly 76ers in Philadelphia on Monday night by a final score of 109-99.
The Wolves again faltered in the second half and were embarrassed in the fourth quarter while the previously 3-33 Sixers pulled away. The home team’s timely long-range shooting down the stretch and activity on the glass turned a back-and-forth game into a route in short order.
What was supposed to be Karl-Anthony Towns and Jahlil Okafor, Part Two was extremely disappointing. As in the first Wolves-Sixers match-up of the year, Towns got into early foul trouble and ultimately played just 24 minutes. He put up only eight points on eight shots and grabbed just six rebounds.
Okafor himself played only 20 minutes as the Sixers got hot with him on the bench down the stretch, and his final line was just 10 points and three rebounds.
The Sixers made only four of 20 three-point attempts on the night but knocked them down late in addition to pulling down 37 rebounds to Minnesota’s 27. Only two Wolves players grabbed more than three boards on the night (Gorgui Dieng had eight and Towns had six).
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Uncharacteristically, the Wolves defense broke down frequently on the evening while the offense was actually largely efficient. Ricky Rubio dished out 10 assists and orchestrated the Timberwolves to a 53.4 percent shooting night.
They did, however, shoot only five three-pointers. Yes, it’s 2016 now. And no, I have no idea what year Sam Mitchell and Co. think it is, but they’re wrong.
Shabazz Muhammad was great, scoring 20 points on 8 of 11 shooting in a well-deserved 34 minues of playing time.
Tyus Jones played less than two minutes in the first half but struggled mightily on both ends of the floor, leading to Mitchell’s insertion of Andre Miller as Rubio’s backup. The 39 year-old played 11 solid minutes spanning both halves.
It was another disappointing loss for Sam Mitchell’s bunch, and if the Wolves don’t manage to grab a home win over Denver on Wednesday, they could be looking at an extremely long losing streak.
Tweet of the Night
Clip of the Night
Andre Miller: still dishing crafty dimes
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) January 5, 2016
Zach LaVine: still flying https://t.co/uzCOvwuXQg
Star of the Night
Ish Smith — 21 points (9-16 FG, 3-3 FT), 11 assists, 4 rebounds, 3 steals, 4 turnovers
The dimutive point guard was playing just his sixth game in a Sixers uniform after being acquired from the New Orleans Pelicans just before Christmas.
He was fantastic, abusing the Wolves’ big men in the pick-and-roll game and draining mid-range jumpers that likely made Mitchell want to grab him and throw a Timberwolves jersey on him as soon as humanly possible.
Other Notable Timberwolves Lines
Karl-Anthony Towns – 8 points (4-8 FG), 6 rebounds, one assist
Andrew Wiggins – 16 points (4-9 FG, 8-10 FT), 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, one steal, 3 turnovers
Shabazz Muhammad – 20 points (8-11 FG, 1-1 3P, 3-4 FT), 3 rebounds, one assist, one steal, 2 turnovers
Who’s Next
The Timberwolves will host the Denver Nuggets at Target Center on Wednesday night to kick-off a four-game homestand.
The Wolves will follow the Nuggets contest with home games against Cleveland, Dallas, and Oklahoma City. That’s right, folks. It isn’t getting any easier.