In one of the strangest games the Wolves have played in years, they took a loss to the visiting Atlanta Hawks, falling 123-120 in overtime. After mounting a massive comeback to take the lead in the fourth quarter, the Wolves simply ran out of gas—failing to execute on several late-game possessions and shooting themselves in the foot with awful shooting from the line.
It’s hard to parse a game like this. It honestly felt like Wolves fans saw several different games over the course of three hours. The Wolves trailed by as many as 22 in the second quarter before roaring back in the third to tie it going into the fourth. In the final period they led by as many as nine. That team was dominant, assertive and together. They were clicking on all cylinders.
Then there was the end of the game. Up two and only needing to take a foul and hit a few free-throws (more on that later) to get the victory, the Wolves miffed an inbounds play leading to a breakaway dunk for the tie game. It would be easy to point to Dario Saric, who was in charge of the inbounds, but with the five-second clock ticking down, he didn’t have many options. After that Derrick Rose, despite a phenomenal game, couldn’t get separation and was blocked on the Wolves’ final shot attempt of regulation.
In overtime the Wolves had several more chances to win but couldn’t seem to make the types of plays that usually come easily. There were missed layups, more missed free-throws and confusing defensive lapses leading to Hawks three-pointers. It’s impossible to say exactly what happened, but something was off.
It’s hard to look at the positives in a loss like this, but let’s give it a try. First things first, the Wolves’ comeback was awesome. The building was rocking, Towns, Rose and Robert Covington were firing on all cylinders, and the Wolves were playing with the edge that they have tended to display in close games this season.
Towns finished with 31 points and 19 rebounds, Rose had 25 points with nine assists, and Covington had 28 with seven boards and four dimes. Both Covington and Towns had three blocks. For what it’s worth, those are were All-Star level performances. Several Wolves should both be voted into the game this year. Andrew Wiggins also had his moments but they were overshadowed by missed free throws.
This is almost an impossible game to derive a meaningful single message from. There was so much good and so much bad (in so much basketball!) that trying to read too much into this specific contest would be a mistake. It was a microcosm of the Wolves’ season—breathtakingly exciting and maddeningly unfruitful. The only thing to do is see what the team does next.
A few things I noticed:
- There must be some kind of a free-throw fever going around. The Wolves were 21-of-38 from the line tonight. They absolutely punished the Hawks getting to the line but couldn’t convert. That was the difference in this game. Oddly enough, the Warriors shot 40-percent from the line last night too. Rev up the conspiracy theory engines everyone.
- The Wolves were destroyed on the boards tonight. The Hawks have no business doing that. While Towns did his part, the improved rebounding from the rest of the Wolves that we’ve grown accustomed to in the time since the Philly trade was nowhere to be found. No Wolves guard had more than three boards—that has to change.
- The Wolves defense was awesome at times and they punished a very sloppy Hawks team on many occasions. They forced 24 Hawks turnovers. However, they also allowed Atlanta to shoot 45 percent from three. It was just that kind of game.
The Wolves are in Miami on Sunday to take on the Heat where they will look to turn things around.