The Minnesota Timberwolves split the two-game series against the Cleveland Cavaliers, dropping the second night of a back-to-back in a frustrating loss.
Well, the sequel is never as good as the original…..
The Minnesota Timberwolves were not able to replicate the success of their first matchup against the Cavs as an all-around poor shooting night doomed the Timberwolves’ chances of putting this one away.
Still, sans Karl-Anthony Towns, the Timberwolves starting lineup shot a ghastly 21-of-56 from the field (37.5 ercent), constantly ruining key defensive stops by coming up empty-handed on the other end.
The defense was solid once again, however, as players like Jaden Mcdaniels and Jarred Vanderbilt were able to slow down the Cavalier’s offense enough to keep the game in reach until the very end.
Besides a close first half, and even holding the lead for a little while in the third quarter, the Timberwolves were mostly playing from behind in this game, with no answer for Cleveland’s young backcourt duo of Darius Garland and Collin Sexton. Jarett Allen had a monster game (23 points, 18 rebounds, five blocks) filling in for Andre Drummond.
The Wolves look to stop a new losing streak when they play the Spurs on Wednesday.
Minnesota Timberwolves Player Grades
Other Minnesota Timberwolves Players
Josh Okogie hit a three for the first time in what seems like forever, but besides some defensive plays, did not contribute a ton. He posted three points on 1-of-3 shooting, two rebounds, two assists, and a team-worst plus-minus of -12.
Ricky Rubio had a quiet game with two points, five rebounds, and four assists in 19 minutes off the bench. Put simply, he was not making as many of the high-IQ plays that led to a win over the Cavs yesterday.
Jake Layman made a momentum-swinging 3-pointer early in this one, but otherwise was invisible the rest of the game. Layman may find himself out of the rotation once Juan Hernangomez and Jarrett Culver return due to the improved play of Jaylen Nowell and Jaden McDaniels.
What’s next for the Minnesota Timberwolves?
The Timberwolves will travel to San Antonio on Wednesday to take on the Spurs for the final time on the First Half schedule with the season series tied at one game apiece.