Jazz 95, Timberwolves 123: 3 keys to the game

MINNEAPOLIS — The Utah Jazz fell to 2-5 on the 2023-24 season on Saturday night after a 123-95 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves.

Here are three keys that contributed to the loss:

• While the Jazz were on the wrong side of a number of tough calls from the officials, they also fell short when it came to matching the physicality of the Timberwolves, as they went into halftime having shot just two free throws. They were able to get to the line a little more in the second half (going 13-of-17, including shots during garbage time) but the Wolves finished the night 24-of-30 from the charity stripe.

• Though the Jazz shot the ball quite a bit more than Minnesota, the Wolves were a lot more efficient. The Jazz shot 12-of-43 from 3-point range (27.9%) and Minnesota was 9-of-24 (37.5%) from deep, with a lot of their opportunities coming on open corner shots.

• The Jazz’s offense was just stale throughout the game, with many possessions ending with them having to settle for a last-second shot. Utah scored just 40 points in the second half, giving the Wolves ample opportunity to run up the score, which they did.