T-Wolves hand OKC second home loss in a row

An incredulous Steven Adams walked past Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns muttering to himself. Towns had just finished screaming and fist-pumping just above the Thunder logo.

The Timberwolves had reason to celebrate. The Thunder had reason to be frustrated with itself in a 119-117 loss on Tuesday.

The Thunder needed a boost after a frightening injury to backup center Nerlens Noel. It looked to have it and second life multiple times after a game littered with wasted possessions, too much fouling and missed rebounding opportunities.

Those second chances for the Timberwolves doomed the Thunder. OKC gave up 15 offensive rebounds, none more critical than two on a single possession in the waning minutes of the game.

Before that, the Thunder needed a jump start. With 5:16 left in the third quarter, Noel was taken out of the game on a

stretcher after a blow to the head and hard fall on defense.

Noel was defending an Andrew Wiggins drive with the Thunder leading 81-77, when Wiggins inadvertently caught Noel with an elbow to the face. After catching the elbow, Noel’s head appeared to hit the ground. Thunder players and personnel immediately called for medical attention and a stretcher.

The Thunder looked to have pulled out of the shock of Noel’s injury with a jolt. Russell Westbrook, who finished with 25 points, five rebounds and 16 assists, scored two quick buckets and OKC had its biggest lead at 85-79.

If only the Thunder could have channeled that energy into the defensive glass and taking care of the ball, issues No. 2 and 3, a carry-over from an 18-point loss to Washington on Sunday.

For the second game in a row, the Thunder couldn’t come up with timely rebounds.

Three Minnesota offensive rebounds on one possession in the fourth quarter led to an Anthony Tolliver 3-pointer. The Thunder committed five turnovers in the first six minutes of the fourth.

With a 115-114 lead after Westbrook’s pull-up jumper in transition, the Thunder gave up two offensive rebounds on one possession, allowing Wiggins to hit two free throws as Minnesota took a 116-115 lead.

Despite five turnovers, Westbrook orchestrated the Thunder’s offense efficiently to get open looks for 3-pointers. The Thunder hit 12-of30 (40 percent) on the night. Westbrook, drove and kicked out to Paul George for a great look at a 3, which missed long. Minnesota’s Josh Okogie hit a 3-pointer from the corner on the other end to stretch the game to two possessions with 27.8 seconds left.

Of all elements, offense wasn’t the issue. Yes, Westbrook missed desperation 3-point looks on the Thunder’s final possession with seconds remaining, and George missed a potential game-tying reverse layup at the buzzer, but the Thunder finished the first half with 53.3/53.3/80 percent splits, respectively, from the field, 3-point line and free throw line.

It finished the game shooting 50.6 percent overall.

Not getting rebounds, putting the Timberwolves on the line 40 times, and turning them over just 10 times were the true killers on Tuesday.