Still no Karl-Anthony Towns on one side and Donovan Mitchell, Evan Mobley, Max Strus or Dean Wade on the other. On the other hand, Anthony Edwards (16 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists), Darius Garland (19 points), Jarrett Allen (15 points, 13 rebounds, 5 assists), Mike Conley (21 points, 6 assists), Naz Reid (18 points) or Caris LeVert (16 points, 6 assists, 5 rebounds) were all present for this Wolves – Riders which gave birth to a victory for the first named, at home (104-91).
To achieve this success, without necessarily playing well, Minnesota therefore relied on the strength of its collective and a 3-point address at the rendezvous, to rule out a team of Cleveland clearly in tough times for two weeks (five defeats in seven matches).
This result in any case allows the Wolves to remain 3rd in the West, a game and a half from first place in the Thunder, while the Cavaliers must monitor the surge of the Magic and the Knicks, now less than two matches of their 3rd place in the East.
TO REMEMBER
– Minnesota more inspired behind the line. In this match which was decided in the second half, it was the success behind the arc which made the difference in favor of the Wolves, because they shot 14/27 at 3-points, compared to 7/29 for The knights. Twice as many winning baskets and outside skill for Chris Finch's men, who admittedly allowed a few too many free throws (16/19) to their visitors and who were not skillful in this area either (8/16…). This difference in the exercise was one of the keys to the game, and Mike Conley, Jordan McLaughlin, Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels had a lot to do with it.
– Cleveland must do violence. Already struggling for a few matches offensively, the Cavaliers once again had difficulty in this sector of play, facing a Wolves defense always capable of making life easier thanks to the activity, aggressiveness and regularity of its players. players in the field. Clumsy and uninspired to keep the ball alive, JB Bickerstaff's men are suffering without their “go-to-guy” Donovan Mitchell, and they need to find solutions to turn things around. It’s up to their bosses to show the way forward and to their role players to raise the level a notch.
– Rudy Gobert took over. Absent for three matches due to a rib problem, Rudy Gobert was back in the Wolves five, associated with Naz Reid who was therefore able to play more out wide (and do some damage in the last act, under the cheers from the crowd). The Frenchman came close to a double-double (9 points, 14 rebounds), notably doing some good work on the offensive rebound (five shots). Good news for these Wolves, already deprived of Karl-Anthony Towns and who must stand together in order to continue to dream of being the leader of the Western Conference.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
