The Minnesota Timberwolves will travel to the Time Warner Cable Arena to take on the Charlotte Hornets. The game gets underway at 7:00 pm ET on Monday, Mar. 7 and will air on FxS and FNo.
The Hornets were victorious over the Pacers 108-101 on Friday. Kemba Walker was a key piece, recording his second double-double this season with 33 points and 10 assists. The Timberwolves, meanwhile, are coming off a 132-118 win against the Nets on Saturday. Karl-Anthony Towns shot 14-for-18 and led in scoring with 28 points.
Walker has really been playing well recently for the Hornets, averaging 24.0 points, 4.8 rebounds, 7.2 assists, 0.8 steals, and 2.4 three-pointers over the last five games. Towns has also been hot in the same span, averaging 21.0 points, 10.8 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.0 steal, and 1.4 blocks while leading the Timberwolves.
Trips to the foul line may prove key for the Timberwolves in this one. They’re ranked second in the league in free throw attempt rate (33.9), while Charlotte is among the best at keeping opponents off of the charity stripe (ranking fourth by allowing a free throw attempt rate of 24.6).
This will be the second matchup of the season between these two teams. The Hornets won the first game 104-95. Towns played a big role with 19 points and 13 rebounds.
The Hornets come into this game 33-28 Straight Up (SU) and 32-28-1 Against The Spread (ATS). They are 33-28 SU and 32-28-1 ATS against the Western Conference. The Hornets are a phenomenal three-point shooting team with 10.0 made per game, one of the highest marks in the NBA. The Hornets will be looking to turn around their defense after struggling a bit recently. The Hornets have given up an average of 113.6 points to opponents in their last 10 games, well over their defense’s season average of 100.5 PPG.
Over on the other bench, Minnesota has a SU record of 20-43 and an ATS record of 28-34-1. Minnesota performed well ATS during its last 10 games, earning an 8-2 record. Minnesota is one of the top foul-shooting teams in the league, making .794 of their shots from the line. The Timberwolves average 105.5 points allowed per game, but have improved upon those numbers in the past 10 games, allowing 96.5 points per game during that span.
Charlotte beat Minnesota in their most recent meeting this season, moving its SU record against the Timberwolves to 7-3 in their last 10 head-to-head meetings. Furthermore, the Hornets hold the advantage ATS with a record of 6-3-1.
Predictions: SU Winner – Cha
Notes
Minnesota ranks 18th in points per game with 101.5, while Charlotte ranks ninth in points allowed with an average of 100.5 given up.
Minnesota ranks 11th in points per away game with 101.7 points, while Charlotte ranks sixth in points allowed at home with 98.2.
When giving up fewer than 100 points, the Minnesota Timberwolves have a 10-7 record. When scoring fewer than 100 points, the Charlotte Hornets have an abysmal record of 7-22.
When allowing 100 or more points in a game, the Timberwolves are just 10-36 this season. Charlotte is a tremendous 26-6 when registering triple digits.
The Timberwolves have an offensive rating of 104.6 (ranked 10th), while the Hornets rank ninth for their defensive rating of 101.8.
Minnesota has an average field goal percentage of 46.0% (ranked eighth). Charlotte is a subpar 6-16 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Charlotte Hornets rank lower for their field goal percentage (29th) than they do for their effective field goal percentage (17th), but the Minnesota Timberwolves have a better FG% ranking (eighth) than their EFF% ranking (20th).
On average, the Minnesota Timberwolves make 22.7 assists per game and the Charlotte Hornets make 21.2. Minnesota is ranked ninth, while Charlotte is ranked 19th.
The Charlotte Hornets average 5.3 blocks per game for a rank of 12th. The Minnesota Timberwolves rank lower (18th), earning 4.6 blocks each game.
Charlotte is ranked 26th in offensive rebounding. Minnesota ranks 27th in defensive rebounds.
The Charlotte Hornets average 7.1 steals per game. When giving up 7 or more steals, the Minnesota Timberwolves have a losing record (14-34) this season.
