Halftime Report
Only two more quarters stand between the Timberwolves and the victory they were favored to collect coming into this evening. They have a bit of a cushion as they currently lead the Trail Blazers 76-57.
If the Timberwolves keep playing like this, they’ll bump their record up to 6-3 in no time. On the other hand, the Trail Blazers will have to make due with a 3-7 record unless they turn things around (and fast).
Who’s Playing
Portland Trail Blazers @ Minnesota Timberwolves
Current Records: Portland 3-6, Minnesota 5-3
How To Watch
- When: Friday, November 8, 2024 at 9 p.m. ET
- Where: Target Center — Minneapolis, Minnesota
- TV: FanDuel SN – North
- Follow: CBS Sports App
- Online streaming: fuboTV (Try for free. Regional restrictions may apply.)
- Ticket Cost: $24.92
What to Know
The Timberwolves will be playing the full four quarters on Friday, but they’re expected to have things wrapped up well before that. They and the Portland Trail Blazers will face off at 9:00 p.m. ET at Target Center without much rest after finishing up games yesterday. The Timberwolves will be strutting in after a win while the Trail Blazers will be stumbling in from a defeat.
The Timberwolves are headed in fresh off scoring the most points they have all season. They strolled past the Bulls with points to spare on Thursday, taking the game 135-119. The victory came about thanks to a strong surge starting at the 3:46 mark of the second quarter, when Minnesota was facing a 55-42 deficit.
Anthony Edwards was the offensive standout of the contest as he went 13 for 23 en route to 33 points plus eight rebounds and six assists. That’s the most assists he has posted since back in April. Rudy Gobert was another key player, almost dropping a double-double on 21 points and nine rebounds.
Meanwhile, the Trail Blazers traveled a rocky road last season, and unfortunately for them the road hasn’t gotten any smoother so far this season. They took a 118-105 hit to the loss column at the hands of the Spurs on Thursday.
Even though they lost, the Trail Blazers smashed the offensive glass and finished the game with 14 offensive rebounds (they’re ranked fifth in offensive rebounds per game overall). That strong performance was nothing new for the team: they’ve now pulled down at least ten offensive rebounds in 18 consecutive matchups dating back to last season.
Minnesota has been performing well recently as they’ve won three of their last four games, which provided a nice bump to their 5-3 record this season. As for Portland, their loss dropped their record down to 3-6.
Keep an eye on the arc in Friday’s match: The Timberwolves have been dynamite from deep this season, having nailed 40.1% of their threes per game. It’s a different story for the Trail Blazers, though, as they’ve only made 33.7% of their threes this season. Given the Timberwolves’ sizable advantage in that area, the Trail Blazers will need to find a way to close that gap.
The Timberwolves didn’t have too much breathing room in their contest against the Trail Blazers in their previous meeting back in March, but they still walked away with a 119-114 win. Will the Timberwolves repeat their success, or do the Trail Blazers have a better game plan this time around? We’ll find out soon enough.
Odds
Minnesota is a big 12-point favorite against Portland, according to the latest NBA odds.
The oddsmakers had a good feel for the line for this one, as the game opened with the Timberwolves as a 12.5-point favorite.
The over/under is 220.5 points.
See NBA picks for every single game, including this one, from SportsLine’s advanced computer model. Get picks now.
Series History
Minnesota has won 7 out of their last 10 games against Portland.
- Mar 04, 2024 – Minnesota 119 vs. Portland 114
- Feb 15, 2024 – Minnesota 128 vs. Portland 91
- Feb 13, 2024 – Minnesota 121 vs. Portland 109
- Jan 12, 2024 – Minnesota 116 vs. Portland 93
- Apr 02, 2023 – Portland 107 vs. Minnesota 105
- Jan 04, 2023 – Minnesota 113 vs. Portland 106
- Dec 12, 2022 – Portland 133 vs. Minnesota 112
- Dec 10, 2022 – Portland 124 vs. Minnesota 118
- Mar 07, 2022 – Minnesota 124 vs. Portland 81
- Mar 05, 2022 – Minnesota 135 vs. Portland 121
