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A Game of Big Numbers

Ok, so there were 10 extra minutes to pile it up in the box score, but seriously...

  • Kevin Love's 51 points tonight sets a new Wolves' record for single game scoring, eclipsing Kevin Garnett's 47
  • Love also managed to put up 51 on just 27 shot attempts, thanks to 7 made threes. He also grabbed 14 rebounds. His combination of rebounding and shooting is so rare that only one other player has had a 14 board, 7 made threes game in the past 25 years...and no, the other guy isn't named Dirk Nowitzki or Larry Bird (it's Vince Carter...imagine that...)
  • We also got the return of the Anthony Tolliver we came to know and love from last season. He's looked like his old self lately. Hopefully that continues. Personally, I think he just got put in a tough spot with the overcrowded frontcourt this season. I'm more inclined to believe it just took Adelman a while to figure out what to do with him than that Tolliver somehow just randomly became bad
  • We ALSO got a freakin' triple-double out of JJ Barea. What's more, he had the Thunder so vexed they were throwing triple teams at him by the second overtime. Think about that for a second
  • Unfortunately, of course, the Wolves' numbers ended up being eclipsed by even more fantastic numbers from the Thunder, starting with the fact they had not one, but two players score 40+ points
  • Add in James Harden's 25, and 110 of their 149 points came from just three players
  • They also, despite two OTs, kept their turnovers to an impressive (or, for us, disappointing...) low of just 12
  • As a whole, the Wolves once again managed to thoroughly and completely not play defense. It's becoming a sad...though not unexpected...trend sans-Rubio
  • I'm still skeptical about the Thunder's frontcourt. They just seem very vulnerable there, which various teams have proven repeatedly over the season (Clippers, Spurs, Blazers....us) Even so-so or even not-good teams have beat OKC or come close by powering the ball into the paint....Jazz, Kings, Cavs...the next stretch of games will be a big test of this for the Thunder, as they play the Heat, Lakers, Blazers, and Grizzlies.
  • Wolves, meanwhile, return to Target Center for a Sunday matchup against Denver and their 8 bajillion equal parts roster. Let's at least not get lit up by Al Harrington again, ok?