The Hawks will be glad they won’t see the Timberwolves again this season.
The Hawks didn’t fall behind by 34 points this time. However, they still suffered a 99-95 defeat to the Timberwolves Wednesday night at the Target Center. The Hawks have lost both matchups with the Timberwolves this season.
The Hawks (10-7) have lost six of their past nine games. They continue a tough stint of four games in five days on Friday in Memphis.
The Timberwolves (7-8) got eight fourth-quarter points from Zach LaVine as they erased a deficit.
Three key players
Jeff Teague: He finished with a 22 points, five assists and five rebounds on a sore left ankle. He had a chance to tie the game in the final seconds with a 3-pointer but missed.
Paul Millsap: He posted a double-double with 22 points and 10 rebounds.
Zach LaVine: He finished with 18 points off the bench and played for an ailing Ricky Rubio down the stretch.
Five observations
Checking Wiggins
Andrew Wiggins lit up the Hawks for a career-high 33 points in the first meeting earlier this month. With Thabo Sefolosha starting on him, and help from Lamar Patterson in reserve, the Hawks held the small forward to just 15 points. Through three quarters, Wiggins had 11 points (five from the free-throw line) on 3 of 12 shooting, including 0 of 3 from 3-point range.
An angry Millsap
Millsap finished with 12 first-half points, including four after he was assessed a technical foul with 3:19 remaining in the second quarter. Millsap took exception to a non-foul call on Kevin Garnett as he drove to the basket and let the official know it. Kevin Martin would miss the free attempt. Millsap drove to the basket on the Hawks’ ensuing possession for a floater and later ripped a rebound out of the hands of Karl Anthony-Towns from behind and scored from in close. The end of the half got chippy in addition after Garnett hit Al Horford in the face with 1:18 remaining in the period.
Nice try LaVine
The Hawks fell behind by 10 points, 33-23, early in the second quarter. The Hawks answered with a 17-5 run, which featured 10 straight points from Teague. While being guarded by LaVine, Teague drove for five straight layups. He made four straight, including a three-point play, and was fouled on a final attempt. The final drive prompted Timberwolves coach Sam Mitchell to substitute Rubio for LaVine.
Hardaway Jr. getting look
After not playing in the Hawks’ first 14 games, Tim Hardaway Jr. made his second straight appearance. He entered the game in the first quarter for his initial stint. He appeared in the second quarter in his debut Tuesday. It appears as if the Hawks are giving Hardaway Jr. the minutes that had been going to Justin Holiday. Hardaway finished with two points in 11 minutes. He was guarding Damjan Rudez when the Timberwolves forward hit back-to-back 3-pointers in the fourth quarter for a four-point lead, 84-80, with 6:32 left. The second gave the Timberwolves the lead for good.
Korver close to milestone
Kyle Korver hit three 3-pointers in the game and moved to within two from tying Peja Stojakovic for 10th in NBA history with 1,760.
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