Timberwolves Wrap: Wolves blow big lead, defeat Hawks

The Timbewolves were able to defeat the Atlanta Hawks at Philips Arena tonight, but the don’t let the score mislead you. This was a topsy-turvy game, to say the least.

The first half belonged to the Wolves, as they scored 72 first half points on 63.8 percent shooting with Andrew Wiggins and Zach LaVine pacing the visitors. LaVine had 13 points on five of seven shooting in ten minutes of play. It was the first glimpse of the LaVine we saw at the end of last season, and that was encouraging to see.

The Timberwolves led by an astonishing score of 72-42 at halftime over the 7-1 Atlanta Hawks. Let that sink in for a moment.

Atlanta struggled from the field through the first half and the Wolves’ lead ballooned to as many as 34 points early in the third quarter. At that point the Wolves began to get complacent, both on offense and defense. As I like to say they were playing “not to lose” rather than playing to win.

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This opened the door for the Hawks to climb back into the game on the heels of Jeff Teague and Paul Millsap. As the fourth quarter began the Hawks were within single digits. The Timberwolves reserves were left in for about half of the fourth quarter and that gave the Hawks the ability to tie the game.

The Hawks actually took their first lead of the game with just under four minutes remaining as the Wolves starters began to come back into the game. But then Andrew Wiggins carried the team down the stretch and Karl-Anthony Towns once again came through with some timely blocked shots — three in a matter of 37 seconds, in fact.

The Wolves finished the game with a 57.5 field goal percentage — still impressively high. They did not shoot the ball as well in the second half, but Sam Mitchell is never going to complain when the team shoots over 55 percent.

On the other hand, the Wolves blowing that 34 point lead was a tell-tale sign that this team is not ready to seriously compete. Give credit where credit is due, however — the Hawks showed great poise in the comeback and it showcased their ability to be resilient.

As the saying goes, a win is a win, and the Wolves will never complain about that.

Tweets of the Night

Clip of the Night

Star of the Night

Andrew Wiggins: 33 points (15-22 FG, 1-2 3P, 2-4 FT), 5 rebounds, 4 assists, one steal, one block, 5 turnovers, 38 minutes

After a slow start to the season, Wiggins has found his groove over the past two games. And with the Wolves head into a back-to-back it will be vital for Wiggins to continue this success.

The Timberwolves lacked offense for most of the second half tonight, and Wiggins was the only player providing offense throughout the entire game. While Karl-Anthony Towns gets all the hype, Wiggins is still supposed to be the best all-around player on this team, and he knows it.

Other Notable Lines

• Karl-Anthony Towns- 17 points (5-7 FG), 12 rebounds, 3 blocks
• Nemanja Bjelica- 11 points (3-5 FG), 5 rebounds, 4 assists
• Jeff Teague- 24 points (10-17 FG), 9 assists, 2 rebounds
• Paul Millsap- 22 points (9-15 FG), 5 rebounds, 6 assists

Next: Wolves Veterans Provide A Calming Presence

Up Next

The Timberwolves will head back to Minnesota on Monday night as they will gear up for a date with Al Jefferson and the Charlotte Hornets tomorrow.

The 2-4 Hornets will be well rested, as they haven’t played since a loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday night. It will be interesting to see if fatigue becomes a factor as the Wolves head into their first back-to-back of the season.