Tuesday, November 11, 2003
WILD 1, CANUCKS 0...SONICS 89, TIMBERWOLVES 87
It was a jumpin' night tonight in the Twin Cities, and they came away with a split decision.
Sergei Zholtok of the Minnesota Wild backhanded his own rebound past Dan Cloutier with 5:09 left in the game, and it stood up. The radio guys were saying early on that it seemed like a game where one goal might win it, and sure enough, it did. It wasn't a stereotypical Wild game, which usually ends up as a low-number-of-shots defensive chess match, because there was a fair number of shots here, and it became apparent that the team that had one lucky bounce would come away with it. Zholtok shot one off the post and it sounded like it was one of those things were when you're down as a goalie, that you're told to get back up if there's a rebound. That instinct is what let Cloutier down this time.
So it was a good game before a more-than-sellout crowd at the Xcel Energy Center, but in some ways it hurts because it seemed like that game was the most winnable on this road trip that also goes to Philadelphia and Boston, which have two pretty though teams.
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Ron Murray is officially nuts. He scored 11 of the Sonics' final 18 points and carried the Sonics on his back down the stretch in an 89-87 victory at the 5000-short-of-capacity (thanks Jeremy) Target Center. Yes, Minnesota is indeed the State of Hockey.
Murray scored 29 points tonight. In the Sonics' five games so far, Murray has put up point totals of 24, 22, 24, 24, and 29. That's an average of 24.6 points a game. Yeah, I wrote the Sonics off after Ray Allen got injured. Some places in Seattle were wondering whether the Sonics could just have him sit out for a longer period of time and have the Sonics really suck so that they could get the number 1 pick and use it on a big man (i.e., the Spurs having David Robinson injured, sucking, then drafting Tim Duncan). It's early and everything, but a 4-1 start has to be a little commendable. The play of Murray is far above commendable though. He is on fire right now. For the Sonics' sake, it's great that someone's stepped up in the absence of Ray Allen.
Sergei Zholtok of the Minnesota Wild backhanded his own rebound past Dan Cloutier with 5:09 left in the game, and it stood up. The radio guys were saying early on that it seemed like a game where one goal might win it, and sure enough, it did. It wasn't a stereotypical Wild game, which usually ends up as a low-number-of-shots defensive chess match, because there was a fair number of shots here, and it became apparent that the team that had one lucky bounce would come away with it. Zholtok shot one off the post and it sounded like it was one of those things were when you're down as a goalie, that you're told to get back up if there's a rebound. That instinct is what let Cloutier down this time.
So it was a good game before a more-than-sellout crowd at the Xcel Energy Center, but in some ways it hurts because it seemed like that game was the most winnable on this road trip that also goes to Philadelphia and Boston, which have two pretty though teams.
---
Ron Murray is officially nuts. He scored 11 of the Sonics' final 18 points and carried the Sonics on his back down the stretch in an 89-87 victory at the 5000-short-of-capacity (thanks Jeremy) Target Center. Yes, Minnesota is indeed the State of Hockey.
Murray scored 29 points tonight. In the Sonics' five games so far, Murray has put up point totals of 24, 22, 24, 24, and 29. That's an average of 24.6 points a game. Yeah, I wrote the Sonics off after Ray Allen got injured. Some places in Seattle were wondering whether the Sonics could just have him sit out for a longer period of time and have the Sonics really suck so that they could get the number 1 pick and use it on a big man (i.e., the Spurs having David Robinson injured, sucking, then drafting Tim Duncan). It's early and everything, but a 4-1 start has to be a little commendable. The play of Murray is far above commendable though. He is on fire right now. For the Sonics' sake, it's great that someone's stepped up in the absence of Ray Allen.
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