The Utah Jazz will play host to the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday at Vivint Smart Home Arena.

The Jazz (27-22) are coming off arguably their biggest win of the season so far, as they welcomed the Nuggets to town on Wednesday and took home a six-point victory in a game that they had full control of for almost the entire 48 minutes. With that victory, Utah has won seven of their last eight games and continue to climb the Western Conference standings. What's helped the Jazz most during this streak has been their lack of travel, as they have played seven of those eight games during that stretch on their home floor. Most importantly for Utah, however, is that the team finally has Ricky Rubio back as its starting point guard. Wednesday night was the first time he was in the starting lineup since missing six games with a hamstring injury, and he finished with 17 points and six assists over 24 minutes.

As for the Timberwolves (24-24), they are also looking to continue a recent surge, as they've one three games in a row entering Friday's game. Two of those wins, however, came against the lowly Phoenix Suns. Now, the odds are surely stacked against them Friday night in Utah, as Minnesota does not find itself in a favorable situation schedule-wise. Not only is it their third game in four nights, but it is their fifth game in seven nights, and that combined with the elevation in Utah will certainly make Thursday's outing an uphill climb for the away team. This will be the first game this season that Karl-Anthony Towns and the Timberwolves play in high elevation, and it couldn't come at a worse time.