MINNEAPOLIS (AP) – Karl-Anthony Towns scored 24 points, including eight in the fourth quarter before fouling out, to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 119-111 win against the Miami Heat on Friday night.
Ricky Rubio added 17 points, and Naz Reid scored 16 off the bench as Minnesota had seven players score in double-figures to overcome 21 turnovers. Towns keyed a 22-6 run midway through the fourth as the Timberwolves pulled away.
Minnesota faced another Eastern Conference playoff contender after consecutive losses at home by at least 25 points to Brooklyn and Milwaukee. The Timberwolves finished strong to win for just the second time in six games, a stretch against all East teams.
Jimmy Butler had 30 points, ten rebounds, and eight assists, but Miami lost its third straight game, all coming on the road. Trevor Ariza scored a season-high 21 points for the Heat, who started the night seventh in the East and a half-game ahead of Charlotte.
At the start of the day, Miami appeared ready to put away the Wolves, the West’s worst team. The Heat finished the third quarter on a 15-5 and led by five points, with Goran Dragic hitting a buzzer-beating 3-pointer.
Towns didn’t let Minnesota fade away. He finished the pivotal fourth-quarter run with a deep three and walked back up the court, holding out three fingers to the hometown crowd.
TIP-INS
Heat: G Victor Oladipo missed his fourth straight game with right knee soreness. … Butler, the former Timberwolves star who forced his way out with a trade, was booed loudly by the limited fans in attendance the first time he touched the ball. … Butler recorded multiple steals for the ninth straight game, setting a franchise record and extending the longest streak of his career. Sherman Douglas had eight consecutive such games in 1990.
Timberwolves: G Jaylen Nowell missed the game with a right tibia contusion. … Towns extended his streak of games with 3 to 70 games, the longest stretch by a player in franchise history. … Edwards had a steal for the 25th straight game, the longest active streak in the NBA, and the longest by a rookie in team history. The NBA record for a rookie is 31 consecutive games by Chris Paul in 2005-06.
Daunte Wright Memorial Fund. Wright was the Black man fatally shot by a police officer on April 11 in a nearby suburb.
The Brooklyn Nets and Milwaukee Bucks – the last two teams to play in Minnesota – and the WNBA’s Minnesota Lynx joined the cause. Players will autograph each shirt. The auction ran concurrently on the Timberwolves’ website during Friday’s game.
UP NEXT
Heat: Host the Nets on Sunday.
Timberwolves: Travel to Los Angeles to play the Clippers on Sunday.
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