Scouting Report: Wolves at Rockets

The frequency with which the Timberwolves and Rockets have played this season has nearly resembled a playoff series. When Minnesota and Houston square off tonight at 7 p.m. from the Toyota Center, it will be the fourth time in four weeks the two teams have met.
But if this is a virtual playoff series, the Wolves are looking at tonight as Game 7. With four pivotal games against teams with .500 or better records taking them into All-Star Weekend, picking up a win is crucial to their hopes of moving back toward evening their own record before the break.
Houston was the one of the hottest teams in basketball when the two teams met on Jan. 23; the Rockets’ 107-92 victory at Target Center was their seventh consecutive win. Since then, the Wolves topped the Rockets 120-108 on Jan. 30 and 100-91 at Target Center on Feb. 4. Since their win over the Timberwolves on Jan. 23, the Rockets are 7-6 overall. They had lost two straight before holding on to beat Oklahoma City 96-95 on Wednesday.
The Wolves also went 7-6 during that same stretch, winning six of eight after their loss to Houston before dropping four in a row. Minnesota is coming off a 102-90 victory over Charlotte on Wednesday, which snapped its four-games skid. Loving his performance
Wolves All-Star forward Kevin Love put together another dominant performance on Wednesday, scoring 30 points and adding 18 rebounds in the team’s victory over the Bobcats. He’s pieced together seven consecutive double-doubles—he leads the league in that category with 26—and is averaging 28.2 points and 16.5 rebounds over his past four games. Coach Rick Adelman said simply put, Love is as consistent as it gets.
“One thing he’s done every game is he’s come out ready to play,” Adelman said. “He’s on the floor 35-40 minutes, he’s going to get his rebounds, he’s going to be getting his opportunities. That’s the type of player he is.”