Timberwolves Wrap: A deflating blowout loss to Pelicans

The Timberwolves had a real chance to build a three-game winning streak in hosting the floundering New Orleans Pelicans on Monday night, but tripped over themselves and were blown out in the process.

It was a debacle from the short span in time during the first quarter in which Ricky Rubio and Karl-Anthony each picked up their respective second personal fouls.

The same bench that had played so well of late tanked in a big way, and Zach LaVine and Andre Miller could not contain Jrue Holiday off of the Pelicans’ bench. At the same time, the Wolves’ offense sputtered with Shabazz Muhammad and Adreian Payne adding nothing to the ‘attack’.

It’s impossible to blame the rotation on Mitchell; the rotation was solid and resembled the same rotation that won each of the last two games.

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When the starters reentered the game midway through the second quarter, it was already a deficit in the high-teens. It quickly ballooned to as many as 23 points late in the first half, and any time it seemed like the Timberwolves gained some traction, they’d throw the ball away and the Pelicans would stem the tide.

The 17-point halftime deficit reached 25 points after a great third quarter for the visitors, and the final score was only made somewhat palatable due to a garbage time run by the Wolves.

With a difficult match-up against the Toronto Raptors on Wednesday, the Timberwolves dropped the ball in what was a chance to build some real, tangible momentum ahead of the upcoming All-Star Weekend festivities.

Tweet of the Night

Star of the Night

Jrue Holiday – 27 points (11-23 FG, 3-7 3P, 2-2 FT), 9 assists, 6 rebounds, 3 steals, one turnover

Holiday was magnificent early in the game, and while he slowed down in the second half, his contributions weren’t needed with the game largely out of hand.

As mentioned in the recap, LaVine and Miller couldn’t slow him down and the Wolves’ interior defenders were a step slow in their rotations on this night. Holiday drained his first two threes and helped open up the wide margin in the second quarter that lasted until the final horn.

Other Notable Timberwolves Lines

Andrew Wiggins – 15 points (5-14 FG, 0-2 3P, 5-5 FT), 2 assists, 2 blocks, zero rebounds, 3 turnovers

Ricky Rubio – 11 points (3-7 FG, 0-1 3P, 5-7 FT), 7 assists, 5 rebounds, 3 turnovers

Gorgui Dieng – 12 points (5-10 FG, 1-2 3P, 1-3 FT), 12 rebounds, 4 assists, one block, one turnover

Who’s Got Next?

The Timberwolves finish the pre-All-Star break portion of the schedule by hosting the red-hot Toronto Raptors, who have won 14 of their last 15 contests. If the Wolves wanted to carry some momentum into the break, Monday would have been a good time to grab another win.

Next: Timberwolves' Similarities to 2008-09 OKC Thunder

And then, the All-Star festivities kick-off on Friday night. We’ll have a preview via the No Frills Wolves Podcast, as well as a few pieces breaking down the weekend as we move through the week.