Wolves record: 17-32
Their 107-90 loss to the Rockets was their fifth in six games after they had won 12 of their previous 16, but it didn’t arrive without Jefferson making a statement in a blow-by-blow bout with Houston center Yao Ming six days before the NBA All Stars convene in Phoenix without him.
Trailing 8-0 after two minutes and leading 20-10 after eight, the Wolves watched Jefferson’s monstrous 36-point, 22-rebound, four-assist, four-steal, two-block performance go for naught on a night when they led by as many as 15 points and trailed by as much as 20.
“There wasn’t anything else Al could have done,” Wolves coach Kevin McHale said.
Jefferson took 21 points and 13 rebounds into halftime. He sank 10 of 15 shots, but the rest of the team went 11 of 32, allowing the Rockets to even the score 50-50.
“(Jefferson’s) terrific,” Rockets coach Rick Adelman said. “He’s having an unbelievable year. It’s a shame that a guy like that is not in the All-Star Game.”
Love went just 1 of 7 in his second game back in the starting lineup for an injured Craig Smith. He finished with four points and nine rebounds in 33 minutes. “I felt comfortable, just missed some shots tonight, and that’s basically all I have to say about that,” Love said.
The Rockets took control late in the third quarter as the Timberwolves went cold from the field.
Minnesota led 69-66 before Alston sank two 3-pointers in the last 90 seconds of the third quarter to launch a 17-2 Houston run. Shane Battier added another 3 and Yao scored inside in the first minute of the fourth to put the Rockets up 83-71.
The Wolves missed 10 of 11 shots over the decisive 7 1/2-minute span.
17 Al Jefferson’s first-quarter points. That tied Denver’s J.R. Smith for the most the Rockets have allowed an opponent in a quarter this season.
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