http://www.twincities.com/timberwolves/ci_5544395 The Timberwolves didn't have anything to be embarrassed about Wednesday night. If they'd had more efforts like this, they probably wouldn't be stuck in such dire straits, a season-worst 11 games under .500 following a 108-102 defeat to the Utah Jazz, who clinched the Northwest Division title. Utah's division crown is its first since the 1999-2000 season, and it came on coach Jerry Sloan's 65th birthday. The game was up for grabs down to the waning moments, but for the Wolves it ended like so many others this season, on the wrong side of the win-loss column. Wolves coach Randy Wittman, a night after his team wasted a 25-point lead and suffered the worst loss in franchise history at home to Seattle, said he was proud of his players' effort. "I don't have much, anything, to complain about," he said. "They came out and laid it on the line." Maybe the Wolves salvaged some pride, but moral victories won't get them anywhere, not when they've lost 17 of their past 19 road games. With 11 games left in the regular season, Minnesota trails the Los Angeles Clippers by four games in the race for the Western Conference's eighth and final playoff spot. The race for the division title ended long ago, but on this night the Wolves got a close look at what it would take to contend. Back in October, they fancied themselves a team that would battle Denver and Utah for the title. "You're disappointed, sure," Wittman said. "You get a better idea of what you're missing, what you've got to become. We've got to take a serious look at what we have to do to get where Utah is." After a head coaching change on Jan. 23, the Wolves' record was 20-20. Had the playoffs begun then, they would have been the eighth seed. They have gone 10-21 since. One reason is that the Wolves don't seem to have much versatility on offense. Everyone knows they're a jump-shooting team. Even the officials treat them as such, or at least that's how the Wolves feel. And their lack of physical play and aggressiveness shows against a team like Utah. The Wolves attempted 16 free throws in the first half and then just four in the second with the game up for grabs. They shot 18 three-pointers, making seven, and were outscored 50-38 in the paint. In the second half, no Wolves starter other than Kevin Garnett attempted free throws, and no player - starter or reserve - other than Garnett got to the line. The Jazz outscored Minnesota 28-17 at the line overall. Trailing 90-84 with about five minutes left in the game, the Wolves reverted to their outside shooting ways. Their next four shots were three three-pointers sandwiched around a long jumper. One of those threes went in, cutting the deficit to 90-87, but that was as close as the Wolves would get. Wittman said he thought his players settled for the three-point shot too early in possessions. "We fought," Garnett said. "It came down to the last, what, four minutes of execution? We hit some shots. They hit some shots, and they got to the line. I didn't think we did a good job of getting to the line." The Wolves outscored Utah 34-23 in the second quarter, led 54-50 at halftime and were down just 74-72 at the end of the third quarter. But the Minnesota loss seemed almost inevitable, as if everyone in the arena knew the Jazz would win. "Being able to win the division is kind of a special thing," Utah's Sloan said. "Sometimes you take it for granted, but to me it's quite an accomplishment. Hopefully we won't stop there. We'd obviously like to end up with home-court advantage in the playoffs and see what happens after that." It's a safe bet the Wolves will be watching them from the outside. --

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