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Minnesota (17-51) at Utah (35-33)

By MATT BECKER, STATS Senior Writer Tuesday, Mar 15, 2011 Tipoff: 9:00 pm EDT Wed Mar 16, 2011

Kevin Love’s(notes) incredible double-double streak came to an end, and the Minnesota Timberwolves struggled offensively the last time they took the court.

The All-Star forward and offense had no such problems in Minnesota’s previous game against the Utah Jazz.

Love and the Timberwolves look to bounce back from a poor performance Wednesday night when they visit a banged-up Jazz team they easily defeated five days ago.

After recording a franchise-record 53 consecutive double-doubles - the longest such streak in the NBA since Elvin Hayes had 55 in a row in 1973-74 - Love finished with six points and 12 rebounds in Sunday’s 100-77 loss to Golden State.

Slowed by a thigh injury, Love struggled to find his rhythm, finishing 1 of 6 from the field in failing to crack double digits for the first time since going scoreless against the Los Angeles Lakers on Nov. 19.

“I’m not too upset that the streak’s come to an end,” said Love, averaging 20.7 points and a league-best 15.7 rebounds. “It’s OK. If we were winning and I was getting this, it would mean a lot more, but it is what it is.”

Minnesota (17-51), which finished with its fewest points of the season Sunday, won 13 times during Love’s streak.

As bad as the Timberwolves looked against the Warriors, they had one of their better performances of the season in Friday’s 122-101 home win over the Jazz.

Love had 24 points and 12 rebounds as Minnesota shot 54.8 percent and made 10 of 17 shots from 3-point range. Michael Beasley(notes) added 23 points for the Timberwolves, who led by as many as 31 in snapping a four-game losing streak in the series.

The Jazz (35-33) followed that showing with another blowout loss to Chicago the following night before withstanding a late comeback by Philadelphia in a 112-107 overtime win Monday.

Utah led by as many as 21 points in the second quarter, 18 in the third and 15 in the fourth before the 76ers rallied to take the lead. C.J. Miles’(notes) driving layup with nine seconds left tied the score and sent the game to overtime, where Andrei Kirilenko(notes) scored seven of his 16 points.

“We try to make it hard on ourselves to win, but we’ll take it any way we can get it,” said Al Jefferson(notes), who finished with 30 points and 17 rebounds.

Ninth-place Utah won for the fourth time in 14 contests under coach Ty Corbin and is two games back of Memphis for the Western Conference’s final playoff spot.

The injuries, however, are starting to pile up.

Point guard Devin Harris(notes) left with 19.7 seconds remaining in regulation Monday with a hamstring injury and didn’t return, and reserve guard Gordon Hayward’s(notes) left foot injury may be more serious than originally thought.

The Jazz have already played the last four games without starter Paul Millsap(notes), who averages 16.9 points, because of left knee tendinitis.

Jefferson has been doing his best to carry the Jazz lately, hitting the 30-point mark in four of his last five games. The lone subpar performance in that stretch came against Minnesota, when he finished with nine points.

He has scored 17 points on 7-of-27 shooting in his last two games against the Timberwolves.

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Wednesday, Mar 16
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