Midway through the fourth quarter, the Timberwolves grabbed all of the momentum in Utah and came away with a 112-102 win over the Jazz.
The Wolves were without Andrew Wiggins (illness) and Shabazz Napier (hamstring). Jake Layman (foot) left the game. That’s two solid rotation players and a player who has taken the NBA by storm to start the season. And while it sounds cliché and it’s easy to roll your eyes at, but the Wolves had the next man up mentality.
Proof?
The hero of the game was Kelan Martin, who is currently on a two-way contract with the team. He impressed the team at Summer League and earned himself an NBA contract -- and it turns out, for good reason! Martin finished with 14 points (seven in the fourth quarter) and six rebounds, shooting 6-for-7 from the field and 2-for-3 from the 3-point line. Martin isn't afraid to get buckets, and that was pretty valuable for a team in need of offense, especially in the second half.
While Martin had his Welcome To The NBA moment, Karl-Anthony Towns was the star for the Wolves. Towns finished with 29 points, 13 rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals while drilling a career-high seven 3-pointers. Three of Towns’ 3-pointers came when the Wolves absolutely needed them in the fourth quarter. While those were the only nine points he scored in the fourth quarter, they were about as valuable of points as you’ll see late in a game besides perhaps a game-winner. There was a stretch when it looked like Towns was losing a bit of control in the game, but he quickly regained it in the form of hitting step-back 3-pointers in Rudy Gobert’s face.
The Wolves trailed 85-80 with 9:23 left in the fourth, but Towns and Co. flipped that real quick.
With his block on Donovan Mitchell with 3:40 left in the game, Towns had his 500th career block. Only nine players have more blocks than Towns since he entered the NBA in 2015.
Jeff Teague continued his strong play to start the season, finishing with 21 points, 11 assists and four rebounds. Don’t let his quiet demeanor fool you. Teague is playing loud this season.
Robert Covington’s stat line doesn’t do him justice. He finished with 15 points, eight rebounds, two steals and a block while shooting an efficient 5-for-10 from the field, 2-for-5 from the 3-point line and 3-for-3 from the free-throw line. He might have taken the charge of the year, sacrificing a bit more than others would have.
Josh Okogie missed Saturday night’s game against Houston with a knee injury, but came up big for the Wolves in this one, finishing with 11 points, five rebounds, two blocks and a steal.
It’s so hard to point out the value that Covington and Okogie give this team. Their grittiness and ability to throw an offense off is uncanny. Utah shot just 36.5 percent from the field. Mike Conley and Donovan Mitchell combined to shoot a combined 11-for-38 from the field. After those two, it’s tough to find a go-to scorer on this Jazz team.
This is the first time the Jazz have lost a game at home, and it’s the first road win for the Wolves against a Western Conference opponent.
The win improves the Wolves to 8-6 on the season, good for eighth in the Western Conference.
They are back at it against . . . the Jazz, again! Tipoff is set for Wednesday at 7 p.m. CT at Target Center. The game will air on Fox Sports North and 830 WCCO. You can get tickets here.