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Jazz 136, Timberwolves 130 (2 OT)
Jeff Hawkins is an award-winning sportswriter with more than four decades in the industry (print and digital media). A freelance writer/stay-at-home dad since 2008, Hawkins started his career with newspaper stints in Michigan, North Carolina, Florida, Upstate New York and Illinois, where he earned the 2004 APSE first-place award for column writing (under 40,000 circulation). As a beat writer, he covered NASCAR Winston Cup events at NHIS (1999-2003), the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks (2003-06) and the NFL's Carolina Panthers (2011-12). Hawkins penned four youth sports books, including a Michael Jordan biography. Hawkins' main hobbies include mountain bike riding, 5k trail runs at the Whitewater Center in Charlotte, N.C., and live music.
All posts by Jeff HawkinsUpdated15 Oct 2021
MINNEAPOLIS — Apparently not wanting their seasons to end, the Utah Jazz and Minnesota Timberwolves went to two overtimes Wednesday at Target Center.
Ultimately, the Jazz emerged with the 136-130 victory, just the team’s second win in the final 12 games.
Guard Trey Burke, who scored 32 points for Utah, hit a 3-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer with 1:03 left in the game that gave Utah a 130-125 lead. Burke added four free throws in the final minute to ice the victory.
Forward Gordon Hayward contributed 23 points and forward Derrick Favors added 21 for Utah, which had all five starters score in double figures.
Shooting guard Kevin Martin had a season-high 36 points for the Wolves, with 22 coming after the third quarter. Forward Kevin Love had 19 points, 10 rebounds and nine assists.
Utah (25-57) never trailed in the final overtime, pushing to five-point leads twice. Love hit one of two free throws with 57.7 seconds left to pull Minnesota within four. Then, after a turnover, Martin hit two free throws with 24.6 seconds left to make it 130-128, but the Wolves could get no closer.
The Wolves (40-42) were down by 10 with less than five minutes left in regulation, but they finished the fourth quarter on a 17-7 run. Martin — who scored 14 points in the period — had 10 during the run, including two free throws that tied the game at 107 with 57.4 seconds left.
Down five early in the first overtime, the Wolves rallied to take a 119-117 lead on Martin’s three-point play with one minute left, only to have Favors’ dunk force a second OT.
The game was widely expected to be Rick Adelman’s last as coach of the Wolves and perhaps his last in a long NBA career. At stake was a chance for the Wolves to avoid their ninth straight losing season.
The Jazz, meanwhile, managed to avoid matching their worst record since moving to Utah for the 1979-80 season.
The Jazz shot 49.1 percent, outrebounded the Wolves 59-45 and scored 64 points in the paint. Minnesota shot 41.2 percent.
NOTES: Wolves coach Rick Adelman admitted that this season’s team was one of the most difficult for him to understand. “Overall, it is hard to figure out how we can be playing so well, and in six minutes suddenly we don’t have an answer. That’s been the hardest thing.” … All the losing has been hard to deal with for Utah coach Ty Corbin. “The guys have gotten better, the young guys have developed,” Corbin said. “They have learned their role, but losing is not fun to go through in this league.” … Wolves C Nikola Pekovic missed the final eight games due to ankle bursitis, an injury that kept him out of action for 17 of the team’s last 37 games. Pekovic ended up missing 28 games in all due to injury, preventing him from reaching playing time-related bonuses. … Utah F Marvin Williams missed the final five games of the season with a bone bruise in his knee. … When Wolves F Kevin Love scored his ninth point late in the first half, he became the first NBA player to record at least 2,000 points with 900 rebounds and 100 3-pointers in a season. … Minnesota backup PG J.J. Barea missed the game due to back spasms.
