This was not really a surprise. The night before, in a thrilling two-overtime victory in Washington, the Timberwolves had used a ton of energy and a boatload of grit. Big game, big victory, huge minutes.
Wolves come out flat and stay that way, fall to Utah
The effects of back-to-back games were obvious, and even Ricky Rubio's energy couldn't ignite his team.
March 27, 2016 at 5:09AM
And an expected hangover.
Saturday at Target Center, against a Utah team fighting for a Western Conference playoff spot, in the back end of a brutal back-to-back, the Wolves lost 93-84.
It was the first time since Jan. 10 the Wolves had failed to reach 90 points. It was the first time in almost a month the team failed to shoot at least 40 percent. It was the first time interim coach Sam Mitchell could ever remember Zach LaVine asking out of a game.
That kind of night.
"Our guys played hard," Mitchell said. "Our guys were trying to win. But it was one of those nights. The mind was willing, but the bodies just couldn't follow.''
Karl-Anthony Towns, Andrew Wiggins and LaVine all entered the game averaging more than 20 points per game in March. The three combined for 68 points in Washington. On Saturday, Towns had 14 points, Wiggins had 13 and LaVine nine.
In the one bright spot, Ricky Rubio, in one of his most efficient games as a pro, scored 23 points on 9-for-12 shooting.
But it wasn't enough. As a result the Wolves (24-49) failed in an attempt to win a third straight game for just the second time this season.
"We were a little sluggish," LaVine said. "We kept fighting, but I felt we just didn't have the legs. Our shots were short, our rhythm was a little off. We kept hanging in there. But they made their little run, and it was hard for us to get back into it.''
That little run came in the fourth quarter. The Wolves were down just two points and had held Utah forward Gordon Hayward to just two points through three quarters. But Hayward had two three-point plays, then a corner three-pointer, scoring nine straight points to give the Jazz (36-37) an 11-point lead with 8:39 left.
The Wolves never recovered. Hayward scored 16 of his 18 points in the fourth quarter. Derrick Favors had 19 for Utah.
Still, there was encouragement. Except for that one run, the Wolves played fairly well defensively, staying within range despite shooting 5-for-24 in the first quarter and getting within a point at halftime. The Wolves had a one-point lead late in the third quarter and were within two early in the fourth.
To Mitchell it was another teaching moment for the young players. He pointed out that Rubio, with a few years under his belt, was the sole starter who played well start to finish.
"You're trying to tell yourself you're not that tired, until you air-ball it," said LaVine, who failed to score in double figures for the first time in seven games and for just the second time in March. "You haven't got any legs in your shot, and then you're like, 'OK, yeah.' Two times down the court and you're panting. You've got to keep fighting through it.''
The good news was this was the 14th and last back-to-back on the Wolves schedule this year.
"Experience in the league teaches you how to be ready for back-to-backs, to save your legs," Rubio said. "But you can't blame it on them. They played a great game [Friday]. Two overtimes, Gorgui [Dieng] hit the big shot, [Towns] was unbelievable, Zach and Andrew too. This was just one of those nights.''
After trailing from the first basket to the final 69 ticks, the Timberwolves defeated a Phoenix team that lacked key players but had Devin Booker, who scored 44 points.
