Timberwolves

3/10 Game Notes: Timberwolves Hold Off Warriors in Front of Record Crowd, 103-102

This is a game the Minnesota Timberwolves had to win. Not only did the Denver Nuggets beat the Boston Celtics to remain two-and-a-half games ahead of them in the standings, but this game was played in front of the largest crowd in Target Center history (20,412) and against the Golden State Warriors.

“It’s a good measuring stick for us,” said Wolves coach and president of basketball operations Tom Thibodeau.

“The at San Antonio game was a good measuring stick. And also, it teaches you a lot, and that’s the important thing for us to improve, for us to go through those situations, and you also learn from them — the San Antonio’s, the Golden State’s. Every game they play their game.”

The Wolves nearly let Golden State sneak out with a victory, just like they did in San Antonio, but this time they held on. Andrew Wiggins missed two critical free throws late in the game, but hit two later to redeem himself. Ricky Rubio had 17 points and 13 assists, his third consecutive double-double, and kept Steph Curry in check. Shabazz Muhammad had 11 points off the bench and Nemanja Bjelica had 10 points and 12 rebounds, his third double-double in the past five games.

“You have to be able to move on,” Thibodeau said regarding Wiggins’ missed free throws. “You can’t look back; you gotta go to the next play. And that’s what he did great.

“They came at us hard in the fourth, and we were able to withstand it. I thought that was the importance of having a lead and playing with a lead, and then playing tough down the stretch. And then Wig stepping up and making those two free throws — huge.”

Klay Thompson led Golden State with 30 points (3-of-6 from three) and Curry had 26, but only shot 1-of-8 from beyond the arc.

“Ricky was terrific,” said Thibodeau. “And Steph puts enormous pressure [on you] because he doesn’t stop moving, either. He’s clever, it doesn’t take him much room to get a shot off, so what you try to do is make him work, and I thought Ricky did that. I thought he played incredibly hard. I thought his aggressiveness offensively was terrific, making plays.”

Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points on the night, but only had four points in the second half. Wiggins picked up the slack for him. He only had four points in the first half but finished with 24.

“I thought Karl had a big first half for us, and Wig had a big second half for us,” said Thibodeau. “And then we had a lot of guys in between. I thought Bjelly’s minutes were terrific. I thought our bench played very well.”

The truth of the matter is this is the kind of game that leaves the crowd wanting more. There were many fans in Warriors gear tonight and presumably not all of them are from the Bay Area. To win them over, this team needs to have tangible results — they can’t sell hope anymore.

A playoff series between Minnesota and Golden State likely will end in a sweep, but given how physical this game was and how close it was throughout the contest (albeit, this is a Warriors team without Kevin Durant), it would go a long way to making believers out of people.

But for tonight, the Wolves did their part in signifying they are turning things around.

“We want them to come back again,” said Thibodeau. “Hopefully we can give them something to cheer about.”

Here is Thibodeau’s press conference via Fox Sports North:

Rush was impressed with his team’s maturity, especially Wiggins who could have folded after missing two critical free throws. “That’s Wiggs,” he said. “He’s so laid back, it didn’t seem to bother him at all.”

Need evidence that Wiggins is laid back? Just look at the still from this video. “I missed two,” he said of the free throws, “but I made the most important ones of the night.”

Rubio said games like this are important for the team’s growth. “We’re getting experience in these games that mean a lot,” he said. “This last week is the best basketball we have played all year.”

And Bjelica said that getting big minutes (33:33 tonight), especially in the fourth quarter, has really boosted his confidence lately.

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