Timberwolves

12/11: Minnesota Timberwolves Blow 3rd Quarter Lead, Lose to Golden State 116-108

The Minnesota Timberwolves held an 88-78 lead over Golden State heading into the 4th quarter, having outscored the Warriors 30-18 in the third frame. But that lead quickly dissipated, as Golden State, led by Klay Thompson’s 30 points, outscored the Wolves 38-20 in the final 12 minutes to seal a 116-108 win on Sunday night.

“You can never let your guard down against them,” said head coach Tom Thibodeau after the game. “They can make three threes in less than a minute, and then we saw it tonight: a 10-point lead dissipated, it seemed like, in a very short amount of time. When it was five minutes into the fourth, it was tied.”

Thibodeau wasn’t weary like he was after the 117-90 loss to the Detroit Pistons on Friday, but he’s clearly growing frustrated with the Wolves’ continual mistakes as the team tries to put together a 48-minute effort to curb a four-game losing streak. Minnesota has only one win, which came in overtime, in their last nine games.

“A big part of it is we have to learn,” said Thibodeau. “They have to do better. You don’t want to repeat the same mistakes over and over again. Part of it is maybe inexperience, but we have to speed up that process. And so when we do have the lead, and I thought we did a lot of good things to have that lead going into the fourth, but understanding how to play.

“Like right now, I don’t think we know how to play with a lead,” he added. “A bad possession can turn on you real fast. And I think you see the experience of the good teams in this league, like the one thing about Golden State — we saw it with San Antonio as well, and I think Detroit’s there too — they keep playing their game, they keep playing their game, and they’re disciplined.”

Thibodeau went into detail about the loss, which I will elaborate on in a column early this week. But if you want to see the postgame presser for yourself, click on the video below:

Gorgui Dieng had 11 points and six rebounds. As always, he was thoughtful in his postgame comments, acknowledging both his team’s meltdown as well as the Warriors’ offensive firepower.

Zach LaVine, who like Andrew Wiggins and Karl-Anthony Towns had 25 points on the night, addressed the lack of a 48-minute effort directly, expressing his disappointment with what is becoming a common shortfall for a team that hung with Golden State for three quarters.

Towns had 18 rebounds to go with his 25 points, and offered his frustration with the constant meltdowns — albeit in rather hushed dialogue.

 

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