Timberwolves Wrap: Another close, late loss

The Timberwolves trailed for the entire game before a furious comeback over the final minute gave them a chance to win at the buzzer.

The Timberwolves were outplayed by the Miami Heat nearly wire-to-wire on Monday night, and only a crazy final minute gave them a chance to win or tie in the closing seconds, but two mid-range jump shots by Andrew Wiggins clanked harmlessly off the rim.

The Heat, who have now one 11 consecutive games, were the aggressors from the opening tap. Goran Dragic knocked down his first seven three-point attempts, and Hassan Whiteside largely dominated the paint area.

Miami doesn’t have any other individual players who contribute anything of note from a statistical perspective, but their crisp ball movement and long-range shooting was far more effective than the Wolves’ offensive attack early in the game.

The Heat dropped 40 points in the opening frame, and while the Wolves’ bench at least somewhat stemmed the tide in the second quarter, the Heat led by 14 points at halftime.

But the third quarter was controlled by Minnesota, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored nearly at will. The Timberwolves won the third quarter by nine points, and started the fourth quarter hot as well, pulling with a single point at the 10:37 mark. After a steal by Nemanja Bjelica, however, he threw the ball out of bounds on a fast break and the Wolves lost their chance to take a lead.

The deficit vacillated between one and two possessions before Miami stretched it to seven points with 1:45 remaining. From that point forward, however, the Wolves made things interesting.

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After a series of missed shots from both teams, Karl-Anthony Towns stole the ball near mid-court and Wiggins hit a three-pointer to cut the Heat lead to four points with 33 seconds left in the game. Then, Wiggins grabbed a steal and completed an and-one, trimming the lead to a single point.

The Heat turned the ball over for a third consecutive time, but Wiggins missed a contested jumper. After fouling Hassan Whiteside, the Heat center made just one free throw and the Wolves trailed, 115-113 with just over eight seconds left.

Tom Thibodeau called timeout, and the ball was in-bounded to Rubio at the top of the key. He passed to Wiggins on the right wing, who could have easily risen up and attempted an open three-pointer, but instead opted to pause and dribble into a tough, contested fadeaway just below the break but inside the arc.

The ball clanged off the rim. There wasn’t time for a rebound, and the game was over.

Star of the Night

Goran Dragic: 33 points (13-17 FG, 7-9 3P), 9 assists, 2 rebounds, one steal, 4 turnovers

Dragic was great, and the Timberwolves simply could not slow him down. Whether it was Ricky Rubio, another player, or a double-team, Dragic simply could not miss until late in the fourth quarter.

Notable Timberwolves Lines

• Karl-Anthony Towns: 35 points (13-20 FG, 2-3 3P, 7-10 FT), 8 rebounds, 2 steals, one block, 2 turnovers
• Andrew Wiggins: 27 points (11-23 FG, 2-4 3P, 3-3 FT), 4 rebounds, 2 steals, one turnover
• Ricky Rubio: 14 points (4-8 FG, 0-1 3P, 6-6 FT), 13 assists, 3 rebounds, 2 steals, 2 turnovers

Towns was outstanding, scoring at will for stretches of the third quarter. The one downside to his performance was he that he barely looked to pass the ball at all on this night, and, fittingly, finished with zero assists.

Wiggins was solid but not all too efficient yet again. While he had two big steals, an and-one, and a huge three-pointer in the closing minutes, he settled for a pair of mid-range jumpers that both missed in the final 20 seconds.

Rubio was very good yet again, only turning the ball over twice compared to 13 assists over 36 minutes of play.

Next: What To Expect From The Timberwolves After LaVine's Injury

Who’s Up Next?

The Timberwolves have started the lengthy homestand with back-to-back losses and host the Toronto Raptors at 7:00 p.m. on Wednesday night in a tough match-up.