Wolves record: 18-44
Geoffrey C. Arnold/The Oregonian recap
From the Associated Press:
Ryan Gomes, who had a season-high 28 points for the Timberwolves, did his best to earn Minnesota its first win since Feb. 18 as his long 3-pointer with 10.6 seconds left got the Wolves within 94-93. Roy made one of two free throws, leaving Minnesota with a final chance, but Randy Foye’s open 3-point try missed and the Blazers beat Minnesota for the eighth straight time.
The Timberwolves, with the fifth-worst record in the NBA, have lost nine in a row and 17 of their last 19.
“We have some stuff to keep working on, but I thought the guys worked hard,” Minnesota coach Kevin McHale said. “That’s all we keep asking: to work hard every night.”
Despite the disparity between the franchises, however, the proceedings Saturday night at the Rose Garden couldn’t have been much closer. Portland’s 95-93 victory over Minnesota featured 26 lead changes. The Timberwolves trailed by four points after one quarter, one at halftime, and one after the third quarter…
The greatest difference in the game came on the boards, where Portland outrebounded Minnesota 45-35.
Foye returned Saturday after missing Friday’s game in Los Angeles because of an injured hip. The guy they started calling Fourth-Quarter Foye during his rookie NBA season played 32 minutes and scored 23 points off the bench but couldn’t keep the Wolves’ losing streak from reaching nine games, not after his potential winning three-pointer at the buzzer hit the back of the rim and bounded away.
“I just knew that was going in,” he said.
It didn’t, not on a night when the Wolves struggled back from a nine-point deficit with 5:21 left only to finally, inevitably see Brandon Roy and the long and lively Blazers beat them for the fourth and final time this season.
8 Consecutive victories by Portland over the Wolves, the longest active run of that kind in the NBA.