The San Antonio Spurs (24-5) will attempt to keep their six-game winning streak alive when they meet the Minnesota Timberwolves (11-17) at the Target Center. Action begins at 8:00 pm ET on Wednesday, Dec. 23 and can be seen on FSW, FNo and C+D.
The Timberwolves are hoping for a better outcome after their 113-99 loss to the Celtics on Monday. Despite the loss, Karl-Anthony Towns earned his 13th double-double this season with 25 points and 16 rebounds. The Spurs, meanwhile, are coming off a 106-92 win against the Pacers on Monday. Kawhi Leonard was the game’s top scorer, accounting for 24 points on 10-for-19 shooting.
Over the last five games, Towns has taken his game to another level for the Timberwolves, averaging 21.4 points, 10.0 rebounds, 0.8 assists, 0.6 steals, 1.6 blocks, and 0.6 three-pointers.
Keep tabs on Minnesota’s ability to get to the free throw line. They’re ranked third in the NBA in free throw attempt rate (33.3), but San Antonio is among the best in the league at keeping opponents away from the charity stripe (ranking first by yielding a free throw attempt rate of 22.4).
The Spurs are favored by nine points over Minnesota and the Over/Under (O/U) is sitting at 197 points. The Timberwolves have gone 11-17 Straight Up (SU) and 12-15-1 Against The Spread (ATS). Over their last 10 games, they have only managed a record of 2-7-1 ATS. The Timberwolves are one of the best in the NBA in terms of free throw percentage, shooting an impressive .811 from the free throw line.
As for their opponent, the Spurs have a record of 20-9 ATS and 24-5 SU. San Antonio performed well ATS during its last 10 games, earning an 8-2 record. The Spurs convert their shots at a high percentage, ranking second in the league at .484. The Spurs are the better of the two teams when it comes to assist-to-turnover ratio, leading the NBA at 1.88. Moving on to San Antonio’s defense, the Spurs allow just 89.0 points per game, ranking them first in the league. The San Antonio defense has been a problem for competitors, allowing only 174 field goals from three-point range to its opponents (6.0 per game). One advantage for the Spurs could be Minnesota’s high fouls per game average of 23.3.
The conference foes will be squaring off for the first time this season. In their previous head-to-head meeting, San Antonio came out on top, bumping its SU record over the last 10 meetings to 7-3. The Spurs also lead the matchup ATS with a record of 6-4.
Predictions: SU Winner – SA, ATS Winner – SA, O/U – Over
Notes
Minnesota is 2-8-1 ATS in its last 11 games.
The total has gone OVER in 7 of Minnesota’s last 10 games.
Minnesota is 3-9 SU in its last 12 games.
Minnesota is 4-18 SU in its last 22 games at home.
Minnesota is 2-12-1 ATS in its last 15 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Minnesota’s last 5 games at home.
The total has gone OVER in 4 of Minnesota’s last 5 games when playing San Antonio.
Minnesota is 1-5 ATS in its last 6 games when playing San Antonio.
On average, San Antonio scores 102.2 points per game (ranked 11th). Minnesota ranks 22nd in points allowed per game with 103.3.
San Antonio puts up an average of 100.2 points per away game (ranked 13th). Minnesota ranks 27th in points allowed per home game with 105.6.
In games where they allow fewer than 100 points, the San Antonio Spurs are a superb 21-2. In games where they score fewer than 100 points, the Minnesota Timberwolves have a losing record of 3-6.
The Spurs have an even 3-3 record when they allow at least 100 points. When the Timberwolves reach the century mark, they are 8-11.
The Timberwolves have a defensive rating of 103.8 (ranked 19th), while the Spurs rank third for their offensive rating of 107.3.
San Antonio has an average field goal percentage of 48.4% (ranked second). Minnesota is a subpar 2-8 when opponents have a similar or higher field goal percentage.
The Minnesota Timberwolves rank higher in field goal percentage (12th) than effective field goal percentage (23rd), while the San Antonio Spurs rank the same for both metrics (second).
On average, the San Antonio Spurs make 25.3 assists per game and the Minnesota Timberwolves make 21.3. San Antonio is ranked second, while Minnesota is ranked 16th.
The Minnesota Timberwolves average 4.9 blocks per game for a rank of 15th. The San Antonio Spurs rank higher (sixth), earning 5.8 blocks each contest.
Minnesota is ranked 19th when it comes to offensive rebounding. San Antonio ranks second in defensive rebounds.
On average, Minnesota makes 7.1 steals per game. San Antonio has a fantastic 16-3 record when it allows at least 7 steals.
