Monday night was never going to be Friday night. At least by no reasonable expectation.
After a 40 point evisceration of the Utah Jazz at Target Center on Friday night, the Wolves this time were in Salt Lake City to take on Utah for the second time in four days.
Ironically, the game started out almost at the inverse of Friday as well. The Wolves came out of the gate slow. Julius Randle didn’t connect on his first field goal until the 3:27 mark of the second quarter, and Anthony Edwards took a little
bit of time early in the game to find his stride with 10 first half points.
It would be Rudy Gobert who got the game going and brought energy for the Wolves, showing uncharacteristic touch around the rim and confident rim runs that started to show themselves last game in Sacramento. Rudy would have 12 of his 14 points on the night in the first half, and be important on ending possessions and locking down an inadequate frontcourt from the Jazz.
A slog back and forth for much of the first half, the Jazz would find a way to overcome a sleepy start from Minnesota and find a way to get up nine points halfway through the second quarter. Both teams shooting 31 percent apiece from three, it was shaping up to be more of a football game than anything.
But it’s funny how these things work. Just like the Wolves have been a victim of so many times, good teams will close out inferior teams at the behest of their best players. Randle and Edwards came out in the second half firing, running seamless action with each other, and stringing together a 25-7 run out of the break to jump out to a 16 point lead.
There were ebbs and flows, but the Wolves never really let it get nerve-racking from there. Ant would go on to finish the game with 35 points on 13-25 shooting, and Randle brought up the other side of things with what seems to be a normal statline of his now with 27 points, eight rebounds and seven assists.
Now winners of five of their last six, and while against bad teams, Edwards, Randle and co. have found their rhythm and will need to keep finding this rhythmic way of doing things against teams more at their level.
Up Next
Take your significant other on a date night this week, maybe go pick out holiday decorations.
If there’s a week to be a pleasant surprise, this is the one! The Wolves don’t play again until Friday, where they’ll be back at Target Center after the quick road trip for their second NBA cup game in as many weeks.
Ironically, in alternating opponent fashion, they’ll host the ailing Sacramento Kings. Jazz, Kings, Jazz, Kings; only this time it won’t be an 8:00 CST start. Tipoff on the lime green court will be 7:00 PM CST.
