Coming into their last of a long stretch of road games with a 2-4 record on the trip, the Timberwolves will need a surge of energy for their matchup with division-leading Oklahoma City Thunder tonight at 7 p.m. at Chesapeake Energy Arena.
The Wolves have been plagued with injuries as of late and are coming off a 116-100 loss to the Spurs Wednesday night. Forced to go it without starting center Nikola Pekovic, who was sent home to receive treatment for his ankle, the Wolves lacked presence in the paint, allowing Tim Duncan a 21-point, 15-rebound game and getting outrebounded 56-41. Wolves guard JJ Barea had a team-high 18 points and 11 assists and Kevin Love had 17 points and 12 rebounds. The Spurs’ Kawhi Leonard, Gary Neal and newly acquired Stephen Jackson scored 16 points apiece on the night.
The Thunder come off a 114-91 victory over the Clippers Wednesday in which Thunder forward Kevin Durant scored 32 points and guard Russell Westbrook added 19. Clippers forward Blake Griffin only managed 7 points on the night as the Thunder outscored them in the paint and outrebounded them 49-31.
Oklahoma City has been a tough place to play all season, with the Thunder holding a 20-4 record at Chesapeake Energy Arena. The Wolves enter the game with an 11-13 record on the road. Last time out
The Timberwolves haven’t faced Oklahoma City since their season-opening 104-100 loss at Target Center Dec. 26. Despite out-performing the Thunder in several key areas (more points in the paint, more rebounds, more second-chance points and fewer turnovers), the Wolves couldn’t contain Durant, who led the game with 33 points. Wolves forward Michael Beasley led Minnesota with 24 points, and Love added 22 points and 12 rebounds. Key matchup: Love and Durant