Only three more quarters stand between the Timberwolves and the win they were favored to collect coming into this evening. A victory is still up for grabs for either team after one quarter, but the Timberwolves are up 33-31 over the Kings.
The Timberwolves entered the game with three straight defeats and they’re well on their way to making it four. Can they turn things around, or will the Kings hand them another loss? Only time will tell.
Sacramento Kings @ Minnesota Timberwolves
Current Records: Sacramento 8-10, Minnesota 8-9
Having just played yesterday, the Minnesota Timberwolves will get right back to it and host the Sacramento Kings at 8:00 p.m. ET on Wednesday at Target Center. Both have had a bumpy ride up to this point with three consecutive losses for the Timberwolves and four for the Kings.
The Timberwolves fought the good fight in their overtime match against the Rockets on Tuesday but wound up with a less-than-desirable result. They fell to Houston 117-111. Minnesota didn’t live up to their potential and found themselves falling short of the advantage oddsmakers thought they had coming into the game.
The Timberwolves’ loss came about despite a quality game from Anthony Edwards, who dropped a double-double on 29 points and ten rebounds. The matchup was Edwards’ third in a row with at least 30 points.
Even though they lost, the Timberwolves smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds. The team’s really been improving in that area: they’ve now improved their offensive rebound total in three consecutive games.
Meanwhile, the Kings managed to keep up with the Thunder until halftime on Monday, but things quickly went downhill from there. The Kings suffered a bruising 130-109 defeat at the hands of the Thunder.
The losing side was boosted by DeMar DeRozan, who went 13 for 21 en route to 30 points plus six assists. He is trending in the right direction considering he’s improved his point production for three straight games.
Minnesota now has a losing record at 8-9. As for Sacramento, their loss dropped their record down to 8-10.
Keep an eye on the arc in Wednesday’s contest: The Timberwolves have made nailing deep shots look easy this year this season, having averaged 15.1 threes per game. It’s a different story for the Kings, though, as they’ve been averaging only 11.3. Given the Timberwolves’ sizable advantage in that area, the Kings will need to find a way to close that gap.
The Timberwolves didn’t have too much breathing room in their match against the Kings in their previous matchup two weeks ago, but they still walked away with a 130-126 win. One of the biggest obstacles the team faced in that game was the Kings’ De’Aaron Fox, who went 6 for 10 from beyond the arc en route to 60 points plus seven assists and three steals. Now that he’s got a second chance to win this matchup, will the Timberwolves still be able to contain Fox? Check CBSSports.com after the match to find out.
Minnesota is a 4.5-point favorite against Sacramento, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Timberwolves as a 3.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 220.5 points.
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Minnesota has won 6 out of their last 10 games against Sacramento.
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