Houston– The Minnesota Timberwolves 142-130 loss to the Houston Rockets was the highest scoring regulation game in Timberwolves history.
That wasn’t the only record broken on Saturday night, as small forward Andrew Wiggins’ scoring streak set a new record for the Minnesota Timberwolves, Karl Anthony-Towns set a career best in rebounds, and the team set a new season high with 25 turnovers which led to a season-high 38 points off of those turnovers.
Center Karl Anthony-Towns had 37 points, three assists and a career-high 22 rebounds. It was only the 11th time since the 1983-84 season that a player had recorded such a stat line. Andrew Wiggins had 30 points and three steals. Yet it wasn’t enough to withstand a three-point onslaught by the Rockets who attempted 58 shots from behind the arch.
This game was only the second wire to wire loss for Minnesota this season. Despite the final score and avalanche of turnovers, the game still felt within grasp in the final two minutes of play thanks to the tremendous effort from Minnesota’s dynamic young duo who have just been playing exceptional basketball since the injury to teammate shooting guard Zach Lavine last month.
“We’re getting better, we’re getting better” Timberwolves Andrew Wiggins said in a post game interview, “with Zach’s unfortunate injury we got to do a lot more. Zach was a big piece of the team. Puts more weight on our shoulders.”
The Rockets, who currently have the fourth-best record in the NBA, were a revolving door of productive scoring for the full 48 minutes. The Wolves did an effective job of slowing down MVP candidate James Harden in the first two quarters, but he retaliated with a massive push in the third and ended the night with 24 points, 10 assists and five rebounds.
Eight of the Rockets 11 active players scored 14 or more points in Saturday’s win. Guard Lou Williams, who HOUSTON acquired from the Los Angeles Lakers just before the trade deadline, looks right at home playing in head coach Mike Dantoni’s system. He effortlessly made trips to the line, assisted his teammates and poured in 17 points off the bench.
The third quarter has been a difficult hurdle for the young Wolves all season, and this game was no different as the Wolves found themselves in a 20 points hole going into the fourth. But a stubborn surge from the starters and a desperate tone set by the play of the Timberwolves two young stars kept them within striking distance, even cutting the deficits down to seven points several times late in the fourth quarter.
“We’re gonna fight to the end, regardless, we’re gonna fight to the end. Always trying to put ourselves in a position to win the game” Andrew Wiggins said.
Wiggins became the first Timberwolf player in history to score at least 20 points in 17 straight games, eclipsing Kevin Garnett who had achieved streaks of 16 games twice in his career. Wiggins continued to posted 15 of his eventual 30 points in the first quarter. However, Wiggins also set the turnover tone for the rest of the team in the first with careless passes. He ended the game with six turnovers.
“I thought we had a shot, a couple shots,” coach Thibodeau said in an interview after the after the game, “But the turnovers got us.”
The Timberwolves had three players end the game with double-doubles. Towns, power forward Gorgui Dieng, 16 points and 13 rebounds, and point guard Ricky Rubio, 14 points and 11 assists.
Rubio and Rockets point guard Patrick Beverly got tangled up at one point in the game when Beverly went face to face with Ricky after a dead ball was called. Ricky stood his ground and Beverly responded with a deliberate and violent push. A technical foul was the only punishment dished out for the mix-up though it probably should have been more. Hopefully the league will take a look at it.
Next up the Wolves take on the Sacramento Kings on Monday, February 27, 7:30 pm P.T.
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