Kevin McHale three weeks ago said Al Jefferson’s season-ending injury would only catch up with his team some time down the road.

Maybe that time has come.

The  Wolves lost their fifth straight, their 10th in the past 11 and are 1-7 without Jefferson. And tonight they went down without a fight, giving up a 19-5 second quarter run that turned the game and falling behind by as many as 25 in the second half on a night when Kevin McHale said he looked everywhere for “more zip, more pep” from his team.

Randy Foye was the only starter who made a basket after halftime against a Blazers team whose length and athleticism gave the Wolves fits.

McHale shuffled his starting lineup — in went Jason Collins, out came Mike Miller — and that starting five combined to shoot 10-for-37.

Ryan Gomes’ streak of five consecutive 20-point games ended with a 6-point game on 2-for-7 shooting as the Blazers successfully kept the ball out of his hands.

Sebastian Telfair didn’t make a shot (out of 5) and had more turnovers than either assists or points (2 each).

Kevin Love’s 2-point, 3-rebound night was his fewest points since he went scoreless at Dallas on Dec. 30 and his fewest rebounds since he had two against Houston on Dec. 20.

“Kevin had a funky game,” McHale said. “He’s a 20-year-old kid, played a lot of games this year. I assume that wall’s going to come up and break his nose a couple of times on the way home here. But you know what? That makes you tougher…Nothing to be concerned about. He’ll battle back.”

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