Timberwolves Look To Avoid Fifth Straight Loss
The Minnesota Timberwolves play host to the New Orleans Pelicans at Target Center on Saturday evening. By Dan Bruno
This marks the second game of a back-to-back for the Timberwolves (3-11), as they are coming off a home loss against the Hawks on Friday night. It marked their fourth consecutive loss, and it was not pretty as they trailed nearly the entire way and by as many as 28 points in the fourth. Malik Beasley was the high-point man for the Timberwolves with 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting. Jarrett Culver followed up with 15 points, two rebounds and two assists. Naz Reid chipped in 13 points, eight rebounds and four blocks, while D'Angelo Russell had a rough night, with nine points on 2-of-9 shooting, in 20 minutes of action. The Timberwolves remain one of the lowest scoring teams in the league, and their struggles are mirrored on the defensive end, as they are giving up the an average of 116.2 points per game, which is fourth most in the league. Karl-Anthony Towns (covid) and Juancho Hernangomez (covid) remain questionable for action.
Meanwhile, this marks the sixth and final game of a road trip for the Pelicans (5-9), where they have gone 1-4, so far, including coming off two straight losses. They are averaging 108.1 points per game, which is eighth fewest in the league, but they are shooting 46.7 percent from the field. Their solid shooting percentage is a result of their inside scoring, while they are shooting just 33.4 percent from long range, which is fourth worst in the league. The Pelicans do a good job on the glass, as they average the sixth-most rebounds per game. Big men, Steven Adams and Zion Williamson are instrumental in controlling the boards, while Josh Hart is also a big contributor, as he averages 7.6 rebounds per game, which is a lot for a guard. Brandon Ingram is the Pelicans' leading scorer, averaging 22.9 points on 46 percent shooting.
Posted on: 1/22/2021 8:31 PM
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