Timberwolves to play must-win game in Minneapolis as Lynx prepare for home opener
Minnesota Timberwolves center Karl-Anthony Towns, left, fields a pass next to Denver Nuggets forward Peyton Watson during the first half of Game 5 of an NBA basketball second-round playoff series Tuesday, in Denver.
David Zalubowski | AP
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Thursday is a make-or-break day for the Timberwolves. The team needs a win against the Denver Nuggets to stay in the playoffs. If the Wolves lose, Denver gets to keep defending the championship title they won last year. If the Wolves prevail tonight, they get another chance Sunday to win the series against Denver and move on to the Western Conference finals. Tipoff is 7:30 at the Target Center in downtown Minneapolis.
And Friday night in the same place the Minnesota Lynx play their home opener against Seattle. Sports contributors Wally Langfellow and Eric Nelson joined MPR News host Cathy Wurzer to talk about this moment in Minnesota basketball and the latest sports news.
Wally is the founder of “Minnesota Score” sports magazine and co-host of the “Ten Thousand Takes” sports talk show. Eric is the other host of that show and sports reporter for WCCO radio and TV.
Use the audio player above to listen to the full conversation.
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Audio transcript
[MUSIC PLAYING] CATHY WURZER: It's a make-or-break night for the Timberwolves tonight. The team needs a win against the Denver Nuggets tonight if they're going to stay in the playoffs. Tipoff is in about, what, 7 hours in downtown Minneapolis. Right now, the Twins are at Target Field playing the New York Yankees.
Joining us to talk about the latest Minnesota sports news, Wally Langfellow, Eric Nelson. Wally's the founder of Minnesota Score sports magazine and the co-host of the 10,000 Takes sports talk show. Eric is the other host of that show and a sports reporter for WCCO Radio and TV. Well, guys, we're in this situation here. We didn't really want to see this with the Wolves-- with their backs against the wall here, Wally. What's going on?
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Oh, boy. Yeah, well, what's going on is Denver has taken over the series the last three games. And Nikola Jokic, who is the MVP once again for the third time in the last four years in the NBA. And the Timberwolves haven't been able to figure it out. As good as they were particularly in game 2 and winning the first two games of the series, the Wolves have not been able to figure out the Denver Nuggets the last three games now. And unless something drastically changes, a likely end tonight. The Timberwolves just not being able to contain Nikola Jokic.
And then his teammates, I mean, they have-- Jamal Murray has been a thorn in the side. And they're going to need Anthony Edwards to regain what he did in game 4 at home, even though they lost. And they're going to need Karl-Anthony Towns to stay out of foul trouble. I mean, there are a lot of factors. I've been saying if the Wolves can shoot about 60% from 3-point range, that'll give them their best shot tonight because I don't know that they're going to be able to stop Denver. So they're going to have to outscore Denver.
And that's, I think, the road they're going to go on. By the way, if they do happen to win tonight, they will play on Sunday back in Denver for the seventh and deciding game. Tonight's game can be viewed on ESPN. So we'll see if they can advance. But it really is kind of disappointing because they had the 2-0 lead. But it has been-- it has been all Denver the last three games. It's hard to get overly confident about the Timberwolves, having watched the last three games, because Denver just looks like a better team right now.
CATHY WURZER: Well, Eric, what do you think? Are you just as worried as the other Minnesota sports fans are about this?
ERIC NELSON: Well, they should be. Denver is also the reigning NBA champ. And when game 2 happened in Colorado, Minnesota threw a haymaker at the Nuggets. They not only dominated Denver, they embarrassed the Nuggets on their home floor. Denver lost all composure. The head coach had a meltdown, Mike Malone. Jamal Murray threw the heat pack onto the court.
And they just looked like a team where the wheels were coming off. But they had a lot of time between games 2 and 3, and they were able to relax, regain their composure, hit the reset button, and they came out in that game 3 in Minneapolis on Friday night and they dominated the Timberwolves. And suddenly, things-- the pendulum swung the other way.
So yeah, but if Minnesota wins tonight, then it all comes down to the game on Saturday in Denver. So it's not over yet. But you know how Minnesota sports fans think, Cathy. They have an Eeyore complex. They expect the worst because the worst usually happens.
CATHY WURZER: Exactly. Well, let's talk Twins, shall we? We are looking at the Twins and Yankees there at Target Field right now. Is that right, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Yes, they are in the top of the third inning. And this is no shock, the New York Yankees lead the Twins 3-0, as they got all 3 runs in the first inning. They're trying to sweep this series. The Yankees, who are also known as the Evil Empire, we know they dominate the Twins. But listen to these numbers.
They're 30 and 15 all time at Target Field going into today's game, highest winning percentage of any opponent in the Twins' ballpark. So the Yankees are kryptonite for the Twins, but it goes beyond that. Fan Nation came out with a stat yesterday-- over the past 162 games, which is the equivalent of one Major League season, New York against Minnesota, the Yankees have 118 wins and 44 losses.
That would be the best regular season record by any team in the last 100 years in Major League Baseball. The most wins ever by a club in a regular season is 116, shared by Seattle in 2001 and the Chicago Cubs in 1906. So this domination, it's really an obliteration. The Twins are a speed bump for the Yankees.
And I was there on Tuesday and Wednesday. Last night, Aaron Judge, the superstar, had a home run, 3 doubles and a walk. And boy, the Yankees love coming to Minneapolis. They wish they had more trips here.
CATHY WURZER: Well, we mentioned the Timberwolves with their backs against the wall here. Wally Langfellow, we should talk about the Minnesota Professional Women's Hockey League team. They also need to win. They got a win last night.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: They did. And they needed to win last night to keep their series alive. They are now headed back to Toronto for game 5 of that championship series-- or of the semifinal series, I should say. And that will be on Friday in Canada. Maddie Rooney, she did the job in the net last night. It was a double overtime win. She had 19 saves and got the shutout.
Grace Zumwinkle, who is up for MVP or Rookie of the Year, whichever you will because this is the first year of the league, she scored the only goal in the game. It was a game winner. And so Minnesota stays alive. And they hope to advance to the championship, and we'll see if that comes out. That's tomorrow night. That will be in Toronto. And then the championship series will begin later in the next week.
And then, of course, the Lynx. I forgot to mention that, and I wanted to get that in. They will play their home opener tomorrow night against Seattle. So it's a rematch. They just played Seattle the other night, and they knocked them off Tuesday night in Washington, 83 to 70. Alanna Smith with 22 points. She is a new member to the squad this year, and she led the Lynx. And they'll have them at 8:30 PM at Target Center tomorrow night.
CATHY WURZER: All right. Hey, Eric, I see the Vikings schedule is out. Well, the whole NFL schedule is out. What do you think of the lineup for the Vikes?
ERIC NELSON: Well, this has become another crown jewel event on the NFL calendar as they stay in the news cycle year round. I do know that Minnesota's going to log almost 22,000 air miles traveling this coming season. They'll go to the East Coast, the West Coast twice, the Deep South twice, and the UK. The Vikings will begin their season September 8 against the New York Giants in New Jersey.
The home opener is the following week, September 15, against San Francisco, the NFC champs, in Minneapolis. On October 6, in London, the Vikings face Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets. They will host your good friend Kirk Cousins and Atlanta on December 8. But apparently, Minnesota's not ready for primetime. The Vikings have just two primetime games scheduled, a Thursday night visit to the LA Rams and then a home game Monday, December 16, against Chicago in the Twin Cities.
If you're wondering about the Packer games, they'll go to Lambeau September 29 when presumably it won't be freezing. And they will host Green Bay December 29 in Minneapolis. And oh, by the way, Cathy, nothing is sacred with the cash cow known as the NFL. There will be two games on Christmas Wednesday this year, carried by Netflix. And the Green Bay, Philadelphia game in week 1 will be on a Friday in Brazil.
CATHY WURZER: What?
ERIC NELSON: And for those of you keeping track, there will be NFL games this season on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Talk about oversaturation.
CATHY WURZER: No kidding. All right, guys, thank you.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: What happened to Tuesday?
CATHY WURZER: They have--
ERIC NELSON: They're working on it.
CATHY WURZER: --a day of rest.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: OK.
CATHY WURZER: Wally Langfellow, Eric Nelson, our sports guys. That's it for us this week. Our senior producer, Aleesa Kuznetsov. Our producers are Alanna Elder, Ellen Finn, CJ Younger. Technical Director today was Jess Berg. Thanks for joining us.
Joining us to talk about the latest Minnesota sports news, Wally Langfellow, Eric Nelson. Wally's the founder of Minnesota Score sports magazine and the co-host of the 10,000 Takes sports talk show. Eric is the other host of that show and a sports reporter for WCCO Radio and TV. Well, guys, we're in this situation here. We didn't really want to see this with the Wolves-- with their backs against the wall here, Wally. What's going on?
WALLY LANGFELLOW: Oh, boy. Yeah, well, what's going on is Denver has taken over the series the last three games. And Nikola Jokic, who is the MVP once again for the third time in the last four years in the NBA. And the Timberwolves haven't been able to figure it out. As good as they were particularly in game 2 and winning the first two games of the series, the Wolves have not been able to figure out the Denver Nuggets the last three games now. And unless something drastically changes, a likely end tonight. The Timberwolves just not being able to contain Nikola Jokic.
And then his teammates, I mean, they have-- Jamal Murray has been a thorn in the side. And they're going to need Anthony Edwards to regain what he did in game 4 at home, even though they lost. And they're going to need Karl-Anthony Towns to stay out of foul trouble. I mean, there are a lot of factors. I've been saying if the Wolves can shoot about 60% from 3-point range, that'll give them their best shot tonight because I don't know that they're going to be able to stop Denver. So they're going to have to outscore Denver.
And that's, I think, the road they're going to go on. By the way, if they do happen to win tonight, they will play on Sunday back in Denver for the seventh and deciding game. Tonight's game can be viewed on ESPN. So we'll see if they can advance. But it really is kind of disappointing because they had the 2-0 lead. But it has been-- it has been all Denver the last three games. It's hard to get overly confident about the Timberwolves, having watched the last three games, because Denver just looks like a better team right now.
CATHY WURZER: Well, Eric, what do you think? Are you just as worried as the other Minnesota sports fans are about this?
ERIC NELSON: Well, they should be. Denver is also the reigning NBA champ. And when game 2 happened in Colorado, Minnesota threw a haymaker at the Nuggets. They not only dominated Denver, they embarrassed the Nuggets on their home floor. Denver lost all composure. The head coach had a meltdown, Mike Malone. Jamal Murray threw the heat pack onto the court.
And they just looked like a team where the wheels were coming off. But they had a lot of time between games 2 and 3, and they were able to relax, regain their composure, hit the reset button, and they came out in that game 3 in Minneapolis on Friday night and they dominated the Timberwolves. And suddenly, things-- the pendulum swung the other way.
So yeah, but if Minnesota wins tonight, then it all comes down to the game on Saturday in Denver. So it's not over yet. But you know how Minnesota sports fans think, Cathy. They have an Eeyore complex. They expect the worst because the worst usually happens.
CATHY WURZER: Exactly. Well, let's talk Twins, shall we? We are looking at the Twins and Yankees there at Target Field right now. Is that right, Eric?
ERIC NELSON: Yes, they are in the top of the third inning. And this is no shock, the New York Yankees lead the Twins 3-0, as they got all 3 runs in the first inning. They're trying to sweep this series. The Yankees, who are also known as the Evil Empire, we know they dominate the Twins. But listen to these numbers.
They're 30 and 15 all time at Target Field going into today's game, highest winning percentage of any opponent in the Twins' ballpark. So the Yankees are kryptonite for the Twins, but it goes beyond that. Fan Nation came out with a stat yesterday-- over the past 162 games, which is the equivalent of one Major League season, New York against Minnesota, the Yankees have 118 wins and 44 losses.
That would be the best regular season record by any team in the last 100 years in Major League Baseball. The most wins ever by a club in a regular season is 116, shared by Seattle in 2001 and the Chicago Cubs in 1906. So this domination, it's really an obliteration. The Twins are a speed bump for the Yankees.
And I was there on Tuesday and Wednesday. Last night, Aaron Judge, the superstar, had a home run, 3 doubles and a walk. And boy, the Yankees love coming to Minneapolis. They wish they had more trips here.
CATHY WURZER: Well, we mentioned the Timberwolves with their backs against the wall here. Wally Langfellow, we should talk about the Minnesota Professional Women's Hockey League team. They also need to win. They got a win last night.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: They did. And they needed to win last night to keep their series alive. They are now headed back to Toronto for game 5 of that championship series-- or of the semifinal series, I should say. And that will be on Friday in Canada. Maddie Rooney, she did the job in the net last night. It was a double overtime win. She had 19 saves and got the shutout.
Grace Zumwinkle, who is up for MVP or Rookie of the Year, whichever you will because this is the first year of the league, she scored the only goal in the game. It was a game winner. And so Minnesota stays alive. And they hope to advance to the championship, and we'll see if that comes out. That's tomorrow night. That will be in Toronto. And then the championship series will begin later in the next week.
And then, of course, the Lynx. I forgot to mention that, and I wanted to get that in. They will play their home opener tomorrow night against Seattle. So it's a rematch. They just played Seattle the other night, and they knocked them off Tuesday night in Washington, 83 to 70. Alanna Smith with 22 points. She is a new member to the squad this year, and she led the Lynx. And they'll have them at 8:30 PM at Target Center tomorrow night.
CATHY WURZER: All right. Hey, Eric, I see the Vikings schedule is out. Well, the whole NFL schedule is out. What do you think of the lineup for the Vikes?
ERIC NELSON: Well, this has become another crown jewel event on the NFL calendar as they stay in the news cycle year round. I do know that Minnesota's going to log almost 22,000 air miles traveling this coming season. They'll go to the East Coast, the West Coast twice, the Deep South twice, and the UK. The Vikings will begin their season September 8 against the New York Giants in New Jersey.
The home opener is the following week, September 15, against San Francisco, the NFC champs, in Minneapolis. On October 6, in London, the Vikings face Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets. They will host your good friend Kirk Cousins and Atlanta on December 8. But apparently, Minnesota's not ready for primetime. The Vikings have just two primetime games scheduled, a Thursday night visit to the LA Rams and then a home game Monday, December 16, against Chicago in the Twin Cities.
If you're wondering about the Packer games, they'll go to Lambeau September 29 when presumably it won't be freezing. And they will host Green Bay December 29 in Minneapolis. And oh, by the way, Cathy, nothing is sacred with the cash cow known as the NFL. There will be two games on Christmas Wednesday this year, carried by Netflix. And the Green Bay, Philadelphia game in week 1 will be on a Friday in Brazil.
CATHY WURZER: What?
ERIC NELSON: And for those of you keeping track, there will be NFL games this season on Sunday, Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Talk about oversaturation.
CATHY WURZER: No kidding. All right, guys, thank you.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: What happened to Tuesday?
CATHY WURZER: They have--
ERIC NELSON: They're working on it.
CATHY WURZER: --a day of rest.
WALLY LANGFELLOW: OK.
CATHY WURZER: Wally Langfellow, Eric Nelson, our sports guys. That's it for us this week. Our senior producer, Aleesa Kuznetsov. Our producers are Alanna Elder, Ellen Finn, CJ Younger. Technical Director today was Jess Berg. Thanks for joining us.
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