featured-image

Wolves Blowout Hornets In Preseason Finale

Mitchell Hansen
Web Editorial Associate

With one final test standing in the way of them and the start of the regular season, the Wolves concluded preseason play on a strong note.

Minnesota breezed past Charlotte 109-74 in the preseason finale Friday night at the Target Center.

“I want us to continue to improve. We are still striving to be a 48-minute team and I think we are doing better in that area,” Wolves coach Tom Thibodeau said. “We have to know how to play tough with a lead and I thought we were better in that area tonight.” 

The Wolves, who complete the preseason with a record of 5-2, were led by Shabazz Muhammad with 17 points off the bench. Karl-Anthony Towns had 15 points and nine rebounds, Zach LaVine had 15 points and five rebounds, Brandon Rush and Nemanja Bjelica had 14 points each, while Ricky Rubio added 10 points, four rebounds and six assists for Minnesota.   

“When the ball is moving quickly, we’ll get great shots. I think Ricky and Kris (Dunn) did a great job of pushing the ball and I thought they put good pressure on the ball. When we get it to the open floor, I think we get some easy scoring opportunities,” Thibodeau said. “I thought Shabazz gave us some good minutes in his first game back (from injury) and Brandon (Rush) was terrific.”

Charlotte was led by Marco Belinelli's 10 points and Kemba Walker's eight points. Jeremy Lamb had eight points and nine rebounds, while Mike Tobey had eight points and six rebounds off the bench.  

Much like Wednesday’s win over Memphis, the Wolves got off to a stellar start, outscoring 92-56 in the first three quarters.

Minnesota out-rebounded Charlotte 56-37 in the game and forced the Hornets into 17 turnovers.

The Wolves finish preseason play with a record of 5-2. The Hornets conclude with a record of 3-4.

Highlight of the Game 

With 7:30 left in the first quarter, Towns cleaned up a missed jumpshot from Zach LaVine with a putback dunk to tie the game up at 11-11. 

The Numbers Game

  • The Wolves shot 48.8 percent from the field, while the Hornets finished at 31.6 percent. 
  • Minnesota held Charlotte to 3-of-22 (13.6 percent) shooting from three in the game.
  • Along with his eight points, Dunn finished with six rebounds and four assists.
  • The Wolves had 13 steals in the game, led by Dunn's four.

Player of the Game

The Wolves had a very balanced performance Friday night, by I'm going to go with Shabazz Muhammad as Player of the Game. Muhammad, who sat out of Wednesday’s game due to hip tightness, finished with 17 points in 18 minutes off the bench and shot 6-of-10 from the field.

Up Next 

The Wolves will play the Memphis Grizzlies at 7 p.m. Wednesday night to kick off the regular season. Minnesota beat Memphis 101-94 on Oct. 19 in preseason play at the Target Center.