Wolves Fall in Orlando, Cunningham Back with Team

Morning all.  Sorry about the lack of recap for last night's game...I admit I barely watched it.  I was distracted by the Final Four (Badger Nation very disappointed), and my son had a friend over and etc.  After the Miami game, this one was going to be a let down no matter what.

And when they announced Kevin Love was sitting out...well.  This is the dog days of the NBA season.

Still, the Wolves competed. It looked like they might pull this one out when they built a double digit lead in the 3rd quarter, as the Magic looked completely out of sorts, turning the ball over and generally resembling what they are: a lottery bound team playing out the stretch.

However, that description fits the Wolves too, and without their superstar, not to mention their 2nd and 3rd best scorers, they were unable to maintain.  A big problem was their 1-15 from three, while the Magic got hot and went 9-17.  No Love, no Martin, no threes.

I like that Ricky Rubio tries to take responsibility when the scorers are out; we've seen it a couple of times before this season. He wound up leading the team in points (18) and also shot attempts (also 18; it wasn't an efficient performance), but he can't do it on his own.

The Wolves were plainly tired, especially in the 4th quarter when the Magic got whatever they wanted. They shot 11-18 in the 4th, and finished at 54% for the game.

Meanwhile, Dante Cunningham rejoined the team and started in place of Kevin Love.  He has been charged with assault in Hennepin County; reports say he is accused of choking his live-in girlfriend following an argument early Thursday morning. Neither the team nor Cunningham had further comment yesterday.  The CBA prevents the team from taking any action on the matter until the case is resolved, which will be long after Cunningham's free agency.

In College ball, Connecticut upset Florida 63-53. I have no idea what happened, as I didn't see it really, but I did notice at one point that Florida was up 16-4.  What happened?  Next thing I know UConn is up at halftime, then it looks like they took control early in the 2nd half and held it the rest of the way.  Who knew?  Connecticut. Well done.

Wisconsin lost to Kentucky in a game that was back and forth throughout, though it looked like the Badgers were in some control at points late.  However, one of the Harrison's hit a ridiculous 25 footer with five seconds left to win it for Kentucky. Didn't they make a similar shot last round?  Sometimes they go in.  Kentucky was successfully able to control Frank Kaminsky, who managed only 8 points on 7 shots; he had real trouble getting position, getting the ball, and getting shots inside against the Cats athletic bigs.

Today is another big day in the league, with tough games for most of the teams fighting it out for the last playoff spots. In the East, the Knicks are in Miami (on ABC), while the Hawks are in Indiana.  In the West, Phoenix hosts the Thunder, while the Grizzlies are in San Antonio to face the Spurs. The Mavericks have the easiest time of it today, in Sacramento.

Next up for the Wolves are the Spurs at Target Center Tuesday night. This is the makeup game from the cancellation in Mexico City earlier this season, and is San Antonio's only visit to Minneapolis.

Have a good Sunday.

*Final Note for all you Arsenal fans: Ha-ha.