MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets delivered the type of disciplined performance that&rsquo;s a prerequisite for lasting a long time in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">NBA playoffs</a>.
The Minnesota Timberwolves sure aren&rsquo;t there yet.
Jokic had his seventh career triple-double in the playoffs with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists and the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves 120-111 on Friday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round series.
&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to give them life,&rdquo; said Jokic, the two-time reigning NBA MVP who led the league with 29 triple-doubles this season. &ldquo;We wanted to be the aggressor. We wanted to punch them first.&rdquo;
Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray added 18 points and nine assists as Denver withstood another dashing game by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards to send a loud crowd of white-shirt-wearing fans home from another frustrating postseason loss.
&ldquo;Proud of the group,&rdquo; Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. &ldquo;They handled their business like they&rsquo;re supposed to, like mature teams do.&rdquo;
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets delivered the type of disciplined performance that&rsquo;s a prerequisite for lasting a long time in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">NBA playoffs</a>.
The Minnesota Timberwolves sure aren&rsquo;t there yet.
Jokic had his seventh career triple-double in the playoffs with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists and the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves 120-111 on Friday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round series.
&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to give them life,&rdquo; said Jokic, the two-time reigning NBA MVP who led the league with 29 triple-doubles this season. &ldquo;We wanted to be the aggressor. We wanted to punch them first.&rdquo;
Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray added 18 points and nine assists as Denver withstood another dashing game by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards to send a loud crowd of white-shirt-wearing fans home from another frustrating postseason loss.
&ldquo;Proud of the group,&rdquo; Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. &ldquo;They handled their business like they&rsquo;re supposed to, like mature teams do.&rdquo;
Edwards scored 36 points to raise his series total to 95, Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points after totaling only 21 points over the first two games and Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, but a defensive lapse here and a rushed 3-pointer there was enough to seal their fate against this Nuggets team finally healthy enough for another run at the NBA finals.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets delivered the type of disciplined performance that&rsquo;s a prerequisite for lasting a long time in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">NBA playoffs</a>.
The Minnesota Timberwolves sure aren&rsquo;t there yet.
Jokic had his seventh career triple-double in the playoffs with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists and the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves 120-111 on Friday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round series.
&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to give them life,&rdquo; said Jokic, the two-time reigning NBA MVP who led the league with 29 triple-doubles this season. &ldquo;We wanted to be the aggressor. We wanted to punch them first.&rdquo;
Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray added 18 points and nine assists as Denver withstood another dashing game by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards to send a loud crowd of white-shirt-wearing fans home from another frustrating postseason loss.
&ldquo;Proud of the group,&rdquo; Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. &ldquo;They handled their business like they&rsquo;re supposed to, like mature teams do.&rdquo;
Edwards scored 36 points to raise his series total to 95, Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points after totaling only 21 points over the first two games and Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, but a defensive lapse here and a rushed 3-pointer there was enough to seal their fate against this Nuggets team finally healthy enough for another run at the NBA finals.
&ldquo;Our decision-making on offense just kind of let us down,&rdquo; coach Chris Finch said.
Bruce Brown had 12 points to lead Denver&rsquo;s 29-10 edge in bench points, and the Nuggets shot a hard-to-beat 57% from the field.
Game 4 is here Sunday.
&ldquo;No disrespect to the T-wolves, this is about us, but we don&rsquo;t want to go back to Denver,&rdquo; Malone said.
With the Nuggets holding their first&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-timberwolves-nuggets-jokic-towns-4ec031b561ee7e896afa55babef29c8a">2-0 lead</a>&nbsp;in nine playoff series under Malone, their&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/nuggets/status/1649584858472255488" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">message from the coach</a>&nbsp;was to keep the throttle on full and not give the underdog Wolves extra confidence.
The&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-2023-nuggets-timberwolves-jokic-gobert-6da46af7c27abab7fea5dff20d507093">Western Conference&rsquo;s top team</a> shot like its seeding depended on it and outjumped the Wolves for just about every long rebound. The Nuggets had two 9-0 runs in the first half and started the second quarter by making 12 of their first 16 shots on their way to a 13-point lead.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets delivered the type of disciplined performance that&rsquo;s a prerequisite for lasting a long time in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">NBA playoffs</a>.
The Minnesota Timberwolves sure aren&rsquo;t there yet.
Jokic had his seventh career triple-double in the playoffs with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists and the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves 120-111 on Friday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round series.
&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to give them life,&rdquo; said Jokic, the two-time reigning NBA MVP who led the league with 29 triple-doubles this season. &ldquo;We wanted to be the aggressor. We wanted to punch them first.&rdquo;
Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray added 18 points and nine assists as Denver withstood another dashing game by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards to send a loud crowd of white-shirt-wearing fans home from another frustrating postseason loss.
&ldquo;Proud of the group,&rdquo; Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. &ldquo;They handled their business like they&rsquo;re supposed to, like mature teams do.&rdquo;
Edwards scored 36 points to raise his series total to 95, Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points after totaling only 21 points over the first two games and Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, but a defensive lapse here and a rushed 3-pointer there was enough to seal their fate against this Nuggets team finally healthy enough for another run at the NBA finals.
&ldquo;Our decision-making on offense just kind of let us down,&rdquo; coach Chris Finch said.
Bruce Brown had 12 points to lead Denver&rsquo;s 29-10 edge in bench points, and the Nuggets shot a hard-to-beat 57% from the field.
Game 4 is here Sunday.
&ldquo;No disrespect to the T-wolves, this is about us, but we don&rsquo;t want to go back to Denver,&rdquo; Malone said.
With the Nuggets holding their first&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-timberwolves-nuggets-jokic-towns-4ec031b561ee7e896afa55babef29c8a">2-0 lead</a>&nbsp;in nine playoff series under Malone, their&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/nuggets/status/1649584858472255488" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">message from the coach</a>&nbsp;was to keep the throttle on full and not give the underdog Wolves extra confidence.
The&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-2023-nuggets-timberwolves-jokic-gobert-6da46af7c27abab7fea5dff20d507093">Western Conference&rsquo;s top team</a> shot like its seeding depended on it and outjumped the Wolves for just about every long rebound. The Nuggets had two 9-0 runs in the first half and started the second quarter by making 12 of their first 16 shots on their way to a 13-point lead.
Edwards, who had 41 points in Game 2 for the franchise playoffs record, single-handedly&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/Timberwolves/status/1649603367663194112" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">brought the Wolves back</a>&nbsp;with the kind of starburst only players like him are capable of.
After a bad pass by Towns was picked off by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Edwards hustled for the block and quickly converted a Euro-step layup on the other end. The Wolves kept up the momentum and cut the lead to 61-55 right before halftime. They were still within six points at the end of the third quarter.
The Wolves&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-thunder-playin-game-36422410495a643d80585f68e74f55db">won their play-in game</a>&nbsp;here a week ago on the backs of Towns and Gobert, the unlikely big-man pairing they created when former Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly bolted for the same job in Minnesota and swung a blockbuster trade for Gobert.
The Wolves attacked the basket better than they did in the first two games, and Towns drew Jokic&rsquo;s fourth foul with 5:51 left in the third quarter, but the 7-foot Serb is just too skilled &mdash; and too much of a load &mdash; to get beat that way.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets delivered the type of disciplined performance that&rsquo;s a prerequisite for lasting a long time in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">NBA playoffs</a>.
The Minnesota Timberwolves sure aren&rsquo;t there yet.
Jokic had his seventh career triple-double in the playoffs with 20 points, 11 rebounds and 12 assists and the Nuggets beat the Timberwolves 120-111 on Friday night to take a 3-0 lead in the first-round series.
&ldquo;We didn&rsquo;t want to give them life,&rdquo; said Jokic, the two-time reigning NBA MVP who led the league with 29 triple-doubles this season. &ldquo;We wanted to be the aggressor. We wanted to punch them first.&rdquo;
Michael Porter Jr. had 25 points and nine rebounds and Jamal Murray added 18 points and nine assists as Denver withstood another dashing game by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards to send a loud crowd of white-shirt-wearing fans home from another frustrating postseason loss.
&ldquo;Proud of the group,&rdquo; Nuggets coach Mike Malone said. &ldquo;They handled their business like they&rsquo;re supposed to, like mature teams do.&rdquo;
Edwards scored 36 points to raise his series total to 95, Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points after totaling only 21 points over the first two games and Rudy Gobert had 18 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, but a defensive lapse here and a rushed 3-pointer there was enough to seal their fate against this Nuggets team finally healthy enough for another run at the NBA finals.
&ldquo;Our decision-making on offense just kind of let us down,&rdquo; coach Chris Finch said.
Bruce Brown had 12 points to lead Denver&rsquo;s 29-10 edge in bench points, and the Nuggets shot a hard-to-beat 57% from the field.
Game 4 is here Sunday.
&ldquo;No disrespect to the T-wolves, this is about us, but we don&rsquo;t want to go back to Denver,&rdquo; Malone said.
With the Nuggets holding their first&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-timberwolves-nuggets-jokic-towns-4ec031b561ee7e896afa55babef29c8a">2-0 lead</a>&nbsp;in nine playoff series under Malone, their&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/nuggets/status/1649584858472255488" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">message from the coach</a>&nbsp;was to keep the throttle on full and not give the underdog Wolves extra confidence.
The&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-playoffs-2023-nuggets-timberwolves-jokic-gobert-6da46af7c27abab7fea5dff20d507093">Western Conference&rsquo;s top team</a> shot like its seeding depended on it and outjumped the Wolves for just about every long rebound. The Nuggets had two 9-0 runs in the first half and started the second quarter by making 12 of their first 16 shots on their way to a 13-point lead.
Edwards, who had 41 points in Game 2 for the franchise playoffs record, single-handedly&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://twitter.com/Timberwolves/status/1649603367663194112" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">brought the Wolves back</a>&nbsp;with the kind of starburst only players like him are capable of.
After a bad pass by Towns was picked off by Kentavious Caldwell-Pope, Edwards hustled for the block and quickly converted a Euro-step layup on the other end. The Wolves kept up the momentum and cut the lead to 61-55 right before halftime. They were still within six points at the end of the third quarter.
The Wolves&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-thunder-playin-game-36422410495a643d80585f68e74f55db">won their play-in game</a>&nbsp;here a week ago on the backs of Towns and Gobert, the unlikely big-man pairing they created when former Nuggets president of basketball operations Tim Connelly bolted for the same job in Minnesota and swung a blockbuster trade for Gobert.
The Wolves attacked the basket better than they did in the first two games, and Towns drew Jokic&rsquo;s fourth foul with 5:51 left in the third quarter, but the 7-foot Serb is just too skilled &mdash; and too much of a load &mdash; to get beat that way.
&ldquo;The offense looks a little different when &lsquo;Joke&rsquo; isn&rsquo;t out there, but we&rsquo;ve been making it work,&rdquo; Porter said. &ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got a lot of dudes who can do a lot of different things.&rdquo;
SCREEN SHOT
Finch, asked before the game about Jokic&rsquo;s impact on making space for Murray and his shot, took a subtle swipe at how he feels Jokic &mdash; who has 14 fouls in the series &mdash; is officiated.
&ldquo;He does a really good job of screening, and moving and screening at the same time, those types of things,&rdquo; Finch said in his best deadpan.
Gobert made light at his introductory news conference last summer of Finch&rsquo;s allegations of his illegal screening with Utah.
TIP-INS
Nuggets: Caldwell-Pope had 11 of his 14 points in the second quarter. ... Murray, who went 10 for 20 from deep in the first two games, was 1 for 6.
Timberwolves: Towns, who shot 8 for 27 from the field in the first two games, went 10 for 17. He&rsquo;s 5 for 16 from 3-point range in the series.

Jokic had his seventh career triple-double in the playoffs, and the Nuggets beat the Wolves 120-111 on Friday night to take a 3-0 lead.

Jokic has triple-double, Nuggets beat Timberwolves for 3-0 lead

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-gobert-playoffs-343fca1ea0dcaf3641b495d40fd4c3ee">return from exile</a>&nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his &nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.
With their best defender Jaden McDaniels out with a broken hand &mdash; thanks to a wall he punched out of frustration in the final regular-season game shortly before Gobert took a swing at Anderson in an argument during a timeout &mdash; the Timberwolves put Nickiel Alexander-Walker in the starting lineup to guard the dynamic Gilgeous-Alexander. They&rsquo;re cousins, actually.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile&nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.
With their best defender Jaden McDaniels out with a broken hand &mdash; thanks to a wall he punched out of frustration in the final regular-season game shortly before Gobert took a swing at Anderson in an argument during a timeout &mdash; the Timberwolves put Nickiel Alexander-Walker in the starting lineup to guard the dynamic Gilgeous-Alexander. They&rsquo;re cousins, actually.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile&nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.
With their best defender Jaden McDaniels out with a broken hand &mdash; thanks to a wall he punched out of frustration in the final regular-season game shortly before Gobert took a swing at Anderson in an argument during a timeout &mdash; the Timberwolves put Nickiel Alexander-Walker in the starting lineup to guard the dynamic Gilgeous-Alexander. They&rsquo;re cousins, actually.
Gilgeous-Alexander was slow to get going in the Thunder&rsquo;s play-in tournament opener, too, before scoring 25 of his 32 points after halftime in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/pelicans-thunder-playin-acf9a3517de39968463f1c06436dcca9">113-108 win</a>&nbsp;over New Orleans. This time, the NBA&rsquo;s fourth-leading scorer picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter and then had to leave for treatment a few minutes later after Gobert accidentally elbowed him in the eye as he rebounded and dunked his own miss.
Towns had 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting in Minnesota&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-timberwolves-lebron-playin-tournament-024ffc281bfdb29922ac13b95c133e45">108-102 overtime loss</a>&nbsp;in Los Angeles in the first play-in game on Tuesday, but he camped out on the perimeter too much down the stretch as the Wolves offense grinded to a woeful finish.
This time, the Wolves took a much better blend of outside and inside shots with a constantly moving ball. They leaned hard on their advantage around the basket, with the big men Towns and Gobert going to work against the smaller Thunder.
Gobert moved around rather stiffly, listed as questionable with a back injury that might have kept him out against the Lakers anyway to make his team-imposed suspension moot. He wore a wrap around his midsection when he was on the bench, but he found his groove in the second half.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile&nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.
With their best defender Jaden McDaniels out with a broken hand &mdash; thanks to a wall he punched out of frustration in the final regular-season game shortly before Gobert took a swing at Anderson in an argument during a timeout &mdash; the Timberwolves put Nickiel Alexander-Walker in the starting lineup to guard the dynamic Gilgeous-Alexander. They&rsquo;re cousins, actually.
Gilgeous-Alexander was slow to get going in the Thunder&rsquo;s play-in tournament opener, too, before scoring 25 of his 32 points after halftime in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/pelicans-thunder-playin-acf9a3517de39968463f1c06436dcca9">113-108 win</a>&nbsp;over New Orleans. This time, the NBA&rsquo;s fourth-leading scorer picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter and then had to leave for treatment a few minutes later after Gobert accidentally elbowed him in the eye as he rebounded and dunked his own miss.
Towns had 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting in Minnesota&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-timberwolves-lebron-playin-tournament-024ffc281bfdb29922ac13b95c133e45">108-102 overtime loss</a>&nbsp;in Los Angeles in the first play-in game on Tuesday, but he camped out on the perimeter too much down the stretch as the Wolves offense grinded to a woeful finish.
This time, the Wolves took a much better blend of outside and inside shots with a constantly moving ball. They leaned hard on their advantage around the basket, with the big men Towns and Gobert going to work against the smaller Thunder.
Gobert moved around rather stiffly, listed as questionable with a back injury that might have kept him out against the Lakers anyway to make his team-imposed suspension moot. He wore a wrap around his midsection when he was on the bench, but he found his groove in the second half.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile&nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.
With their best defender Jaden McDaniels out with a broken hand &mdash; thanks to a wall he punched out of frustration in the final regular-season game shortly before Gobert took a swing at Anderson in an argument during a timeout &mdash; the Timberwolves put Nickiel Alexander-Walker in the starting lineup to guard the dynamic Gilgeous-Alexander. They&rsquo;re cousins, actually.
Gilgeous-Alexander was slow to get going in the Thunder&rsquo;s play-in tournament opener, too, before scoring 25 of his 32 points after halftime in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/pelicans-thunder-playin-acf9a3517de39968463f1c06436dcca9">113-108 win</a>&nbsp;over New Orleans. This time, the NBA&rsquo;s fourth-leading scorer picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter and then had to leave for treatment a few minutes later after Gobert accidentally elbowed him in the eye as he rebounded and dunked his own miss.
Towns had 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting in Minnesota&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-timberwolves-lebron-playin-tournament-024ffc281bfdb29922ac13b95c133e45">108-102 overtime loss</a>&nbsp;in Los Angeles in the first play-in game on Tuesday, but he camped out on the perimeter too much down the stretch as the Wolves offense grinded to a woeful finish.
This time, the Wolves took a much better blend of outside and inside shots with a constantly moving ball. They leaned hard on their advantage around the basket, with the big men Towns and Gobert going to work against the smaller Thunder.
Gobert moved around rather stiffly, listed as questionable with a back injury that might have kept him out against the Lakers anyway to make his team-imposed suspension moot. He wore a wrap around his midsection when he was on the bench, but he found his groove in the second half.
The Thunder came a long way from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/oklahoma-city-thunder-nba-sports-draft-8c087d0afbe773f3d61b24753f35b713">loss of No. 2 overall pick Chet Holmgren</a>, the 7-foot-1 Minneapolis native who broke his foot in an offseason pro-am game, but they let the Timberwolves pile up the highlights down the stretch.
RELEARNING PROCESS
The Wolves won three of four matchups with the Thunder, playing twice in the first five days of the season and twice more by Dec. 16. Towns was out with an injury then. The three-team trade that jettisoned D&rsquo;Angelo Russell from the Minnesota backcourt and brought in Conley and Alexander-Walker was still two months from conception.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Karl-Anthony Towns had 28 points and 11 rebounds to lead Minnesota into the playoffs, as the Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.
Rudy Gobert had 21 points and 10 rebounds in his return from exile&nbsp;for swinging at teammate Kyle Anderson, and the Wolves filled out the NBA playoff bracket by seizing the No. 8 seed in the Western Conference with a near-perfect performance at the end of another harder-than-it-had-to-be season.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and 10 rebounds for the Wolves, who had a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint. They will face No. 1 seed Denver in a best-of-seven series starting on Sunday night.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander led the Thunder with 22 points, going 12 for 12 from the free throw line but just 5 for 19 from the field. Jalen Williams and Lu Dort each scored 17 points.
With their best defender Jaden McDaniels out with a broken hand &mdash; thanks to a wall he punched out of frustration in the final regular-season game shortly before Gobert took a swing at Anderson in an argument during a timeout &mdash; the Timberwolves put Nickiel Alexander-Walker in the starting lineup to guard the dynamic Gilgeous-Alexander. They&rsquo;re cousins, actually.
Gilgeous-Alexander was slow to get going in the Thunder&rsquo;s play-in tournament opener, too, before scoring 25 of his 32 points after halftime in the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/pelicans-thunder-playin-acf9a3517de39968463f1c06436dcca9">113-108 win</a>&nbsp;over New Orleans. This time, the NBA&rsquo;s fourth-leading scorer picked up his fourth foul early in the third quarter and then had to leave for treatment a few minutes later after Gobert accidentally elbowed him in the eye as he rebounded and dunked his own miss.
Towns had 24 points on 8-for-12 shooting in Minnesota&rsquo;s&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-timberwolves-lebron-playin-tournament-024ffc281bfdb29922ac13b95c133e45">108-102 overtime loss</a>&nbsp;in Los Angeles in the first play-in game on Tuesday, but he camped out on the perimeter too much down the stretch as the Wolves offense grinded to a woeful finish.
This time, the Wolves took a much better blend of outside and inside shots with a constantly moving ball. They leaned hard on their advantage around the basket, with the big men Towns and Gobert going to work against the smaller Thunder.
Gobert moved around rather stiffly, listed as questionable with a back injury that might have kept him out against the Lakers anyway to make his team-imposed suspension moot. He wore a wrap around his midsection when he was on the bench, but he found his groove in the second half.
The Thunder came a long way from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/oklahoma-city-thunder-nba-sports-draft-8c087d0afbe773f3d61b24753f35b713">loss of No. 2 overall pick Chet Holmgren</a>, the 7-foot-1 Minneapolis native who broke his foot in an offseason pro-am game, but they let the Timberwolves pile up the highlights down the stretch.
RELEARNING PROCESS
The Wolves won three of four matchups with the Thunder, playing twice in the first five days of the season and twice more by Dec. 16. Towns was out with an injury then. The three-team trade that jettisoned D&rsquo;Angelo Russell from the Minnesota backcourt and brought in Conley and Alexander-Walker was still two months from conception.
So was it even worth reviewing the film from those games?
&ldquo;We do because we&rsquo;re paranoid, and what else are you going to do? Like, watch Netflix?&rdquo; Oklahoma City coach Mark Daigneault said. &ldquo;But it&rsquo;s different. They&rsquo;re missing guys. We&rsquo;re different. Both teams have evolved since then.&rdquo;
WITH HONORS
Daigneault was announced by the NBA as one of&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/nba-mvp-jokic-embiid-antetokounmpo-award-finalists-befc47525340c68c47b50cf5ddcfdee5">three finalists</a>&nbsp;for the Coach of the Year award. Gilgeous-Alexander (Most Improved Player) and Jalen Williams (Rookie of the Year) also landed on their respective lists. Scott Brooks (2010) is the only previous Coach of the Year winner the franchise has had since it moved to Oklahoma City in 2008.
TIP-INS
Thunder: Josh Giddey went 2 for 13 from the floor.
Timberwolves: Edwards, who went 3 for 17 from the field against the Lakers, made 8 of 19 shots. ... Walker-Alexander had 12 points.

The Timberwolves muscled and hustled their way past the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 to finish the play-in tournament on Friday night.

Wolves go big to beat Thunder in play-in game, get 8th seed

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/hub/NBA">playoff race</a>.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in the lineup on Sunday, so that&rsquo;s the best response I can have,&rdquo; James said.
Davis, for his part, said he finished the game on adrenaline and would be fine to play on Sunday, too.
WHISTLE STOP
Gobert ($25,000) and Finch ($15,000) were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-rudy-gobert-chris-finch-fined-33650a7db99c847c0ccfcc2e33e7b56b">fined by the NBA</a>&nbsp;for criticizing the officiating Wednesday after their&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/kevin-durant-devin-booker-suns-timberwolves-71b5ba5d955e4ba516d1b7d1176d4730">loss at Phoenix</a>&nbsp;when the Suns had 27 free-throw attempts and the Wolves had 12. This time, they went to the line 19 times &mdash; making 16 &mdash; and the Lakers had 30 tries.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Vanderbilt had 12 points. ... Another former Wolves player, Malik Beasley, had three first-quarter 3-pointers.
Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards had 11 points on just 4-for-16 shooting. ... Gobert had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Lakers: At Houston on Sunday night.
Timberwolves: Host Portland on Sunday.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in the lineup on Sunday, so that&rsquo;s the best response I can have,&rdquo; James said.
Davis, for his part, said he finished the game on adrenaline and would be fine to play on Sunday, too.
WHISTLE STOP
Gobert ($25,000) and Finch ($15,000) were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/timberwolves-rudy-gobert-chris-finch-fined-for-criticizing-refs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fined by the NBA</a>&nbsp;for criticizing the officiating Wednesday after their&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/kevin-durant-devin-booker-suns-timberwolves-71b5ba5d955e4ba516d1b7d1176d4730">loss at Phoenix</a>&nbsp;when the Suns had 27 free-throw attempts and the Wolves had 12. This time, they went to the line 19 times &mdash; making 16 &mdash; and the Lakers had 30 tries.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Vanderbilt had 12 points. ... Another former Wolves player, Malik Beasley, had three first-quarter 3-pointers.
Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards had 11 points on just 4-for-16 shooting. ... Gobert had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Lakers: At Houston on Sunday night.
Timberwolves: Host Portland on Sunday.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in the lineup on Sunday, so that&rsquo;s the best response I can have,&rdquo; James said.
Davis, for his part, said he finished the game on adrenaline and would be fine to play on Sunday, too.
WHISTLE STOP
Gobert ($25,000) and Finch ($15,000) were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/timberwolves-rudy-gobert-chris-finch-fined-for-criticizing-refs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fined by the NBA</a> for criticizing the officiating Wednesday after their loss at Phoenix&nbsp;when the Suns had 27 free-throw attempts and the Wolves had 12. This time, they went to the line 19 times &mdash; making 16 &mdash; and the Lakers had 30 tries.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Vanderbilt had 12 points. ... Another former Wolves player, Malik Beasley, had three first-quarter 3-pointers.
Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards had 11 points on just 4-for-16 shooting. ... Gobert had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Lakers: At Houston on Sunday night.
Timberwolves: Host Portland on Sunday.

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; Anthony Davis scored 17 of his 38 points in the fourth quarter and had 17 rebounds to lift the Los Angeles Lakers past Minnesota 123-111 and leapfrog the Timberwolves on Friday night in the crowded Western Conference playoff race.
&ldquo;You&rsquo;ve got to have that one pivotal force that&rsquo;s leading the charge, and in our case with this particular team here in the moment it&rsquo;s AD,&rdquo; Lakers coach Darvin Ham said. &ldquo;When he comes out and he&rsquo;s aggressive and we&rsquo;re feeding him and he&rsquo;s not settling and he&rsquo;s putting pressure on the paint, putting pressure on the rim, we find ourselves having a lot of success.&rdquo;
LeBron James added 18 points and 10 rebounds and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell had 12 points and 10 assists against his former team as the Lakers (39-38) won for the fifth time in six games to move into seventh place. They&rsquo;re even with New Orleans, owning the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Pelicans.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve made some huge climbs, but we&rsquo;re not finished,&rdquo; said Davis, who also had 38 points Wednesday in the win at Chicago. &ldquo;We&rsquo;re hungry to not only make the playoffs but make some noise.&rdquo;
The Lakers improved to 9-4 since losing at home to the Wolves on March 3.
&ldquo;We jumped on AD&rsquo;s back, and he brought us home,&rdquo; James said.
Mike Conley had 25 points on 7-for-11 shooting with seven assists before fouling out, and Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points for the Timberwolves (39-39), who tumbled into ninth place. They entered the evening one game behind Golden State and the cut to avoid the play-in tournament, with the Warriors tipping off later at home against San Antonio.
Davis scored 12 straight points for the Lakers over a 3:52 span late in the fourth quarter to seal the steely comeback from a deficit that hit 13 points shortly after halftime. He made five baskets in a row with Wolves center Rudy Gobert on the bench, dominating on the glass, in the post and at the rim.
&ldquo;He&rsquo;s playing at a super high level right now,&rdquo; Wolves coach Chris Finch said.
The Lakers took charge earlier with a 24-2 spurt over a 6:49 stretch of the third quarter with their defense on lockdown mode. Conley&rsquo;s turn to rest on the bench during that run was ill-timed. Davis rolled his left ankle around the start of the Lakers surge, a breath-holding sequence that only seemed to energize the visitors.
&ldquo;We started to turn the ball over, and the ball started to stick much more,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We kind of lost our flow offensively, and it really affected our defense.&rdquo;
The Wolves, whose bench was shortened without center Naz Reid and his&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/Reid%20injured%20https://apnews.com/article/timberwolves-naz-reid-injury-bd6a7eaa1077434f088eadc549874d42" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">broken wrist</a>, went 2 for 14 from 3-point range in the third quarter and were outscored 35-18 in a discouraging stretch for a fired-up crowd that included local sports superstars Justin Jefferson and Kirill Kaprizov in floor seats.
FEELING BETTER
James has been rebuilding his stamina from the&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/lakers-lebron-james-return-injury-109c58929fb947c7ebd81540121a44f3" target="_blank" rel="noopener">month-long absence</a>&nbsp;to a torn tendon in his right foot, and the second time with this new starting lineup with Davis, Russell, Austin Reaves and Jarred Vanderbilt produced a second win to start this five-game road trip.
&ldquo;I&rsquo;ll be in the lineup on Sunday, so that&rsquo;s the best response I can have,&rdquo; James said.
Davis, for his part, said he finished the game on adrenaline and would be fine to play on Sunday, too.
WHISTLE STOP
Gobert ($25,000) and Finch ($15,000) were&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.basketballnews.com/stories/timberwolves-rudy-gobert-chris-finch-fined-for-criticizing-refs" target="_blank" rel="noopener">fined by the NBA</a> for criticizing the officiating Wednesday after their loss at Phoenix when the Suns had 27 free-throw attempts and the Wolves had 12.
In tonight's game, the Wolves went to the line 19 times &mdash; making 16 &mdash; and the Lakers had 30 tries.
TIP-INS
Lakers: Vanderbilt had 12 points. ... Another former Wolves player, Malik Beasley, had three first-quarter 3-pointers.
Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards had 11 points on just 4-for-16 shooting. ... Gobert had 14 points and 11 rebounds.
UP NEXT
Lakers: At Houston on Sunday night.
Timberwolves: Host Portland on Sunday.

Anthony Davis had 38 points and 17 rebounds to lift the Lakers past the Timberwolves 123-111 on Friday night.

Lakers overtake Timberwolves in standings with 123-111 win

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; The Washington Wizards looked ready to start their All-Star break early, before Bradley Beal helped snap them out of their funk.
This new-look, still-adjusting team has been starting to turn a corner.
Beal had 13 of his 35 points over the final 4 1/2 minutes to help the Wizards finish their rally from a 20-point first-quarter deficit and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 on Thursday night.
Kyle Kuzma &mdash; who had 16 points on just 6-for-21 shooting &mdash; swished a top-of-the-key fadeaway from deep for a 107-106 lead that was Washington&rsquo;s first of the game with 1:14 to go.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to keep building these habits that we&rsquo;re doing right now,&rdquo; Kuzma said. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re playing great team ball right now.&rdquo;
Beal, who topped the 30-point mark for the third time in four games, followed with a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left &mdash; after a miss by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards &mdash; to make it 110-106.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; The Washington Wizards looked ready to start their All-Star break early, before Bradley Beal helped snap them out of their funk.
This new-look, still-adjusting team has been starting to turn a corner.
Beal had 13 of his 35 points over the final 4 1/2 minutes to help the Wizards finish their rally from a 20-point first-quarter deficit and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 on Thursday night.
Kyle Kuzma &mdash; who had 16 points on just 6-for-21 shooting &mdash; swished a top-of-the-key fadeaway from deep for a 107-106 lead that was Washington&rsquo;s first of the game with 1:14 to go.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to keep building these habits that we&rsquo;re doing right now,&rdquo; Kuzma said. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re playing great team ball right now.&rdquo;
Beal, who topped the 30-point mark for the third time in four games, followed with a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left &mdash; after a miss by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards &mdash; to make it 110-106.
&ldquo;Probably this is the best game for me this season so far, because of how we showed our heart, we stayed in the game, we kept playing,&rdquo; said Kristaps Porzingis, who had 14 points. &ldquo;Some guys were already like checked out a little bit. We locked back in and we pulled it out of somewhere.&rdquo;
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; The Washington Wizards looked ready to start their All-Star break early, before Bradley Beal helped snap them out of their funk.
This new-look, still-adjusting team has been starting to turn a corner.
Beal had 13 of his 35 points over the final 4 1/2 minutes to help the Wizards finish their rally from a 20-point first-quarter deficit and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 on Thursday night.
Kyle Kuzma &mdash; who had 16 points on just 6-for-21 shooting &mdash; swished a top-of-the-key fadeaway from deep for a 107-106 lead that was Washington&rsquo;s first of the game with 1:14 to go.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to keep building these habits that we&rsquo;re doing right now,&rdquo; Kuzma said. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re playing great team ball right now.&rdquo;
Beal, who topped the 30-point mark for the third time in four games, followed with a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left &mdash; after a miss by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards &mdash; to make it 110-106.
&ldquo;Probably this is the best game for me this season so far, because of how we showed our heart, we stayed in the game, we kept playing,&rdquo; said Kristaps Porzingis, who had 14 points. &ldquo;Some guys were already like checked out a little bit. We locked back in and we pulled it out of somewhere.&rdquo;
Corey Kispert scored 15 points off the bench to offset off nights by Kuzma and Porzingis and help the Wizards (28-30) build on their recent momentum entering the All-Star break. They have won 10 of their last 14 and hold the 10th and final spot for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re still learning each other, but now we feel like we can take off running,&rdquo; Beal said.
Edwards had 18 of his 34 points in the first quarter to help the Timberwolves surge to a 30-10 lead. They were still ahead 99-92 with 4:38 left after three free throws by Kyle Anderson, before Beal hit a wide-open 3-pointer to spark his late surge.
Rudy Gobert had 17 points and 19 rebounds for the Timberwolves (31-30), who were derailed by their characteristic mid-game lulls and missed an opportunity to move a season-best three games above the .500 mark.
With the Wizards wearing their hot pink &ldquo;City Edition&rdquo; uniforms in an&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.nba.com/news/washington-wizards-city-edition" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ode to the city&rsquo;s iconic cherry blossoms</a>, the Wolves were the hotter team for most of the game while new point guard Mike Conley continued to help Gobert find his offensive groove with the pick-and-rolls and lob passes they perfected together in Utah.
&nbsp;

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; The Washington Wizards looked ready to start their All-Star break early, before Bradley Beal helped snap them out of their funk.
This new-look, still-adjusting team has been starting to turn a corner.
Beal had 13 of his 35 points over the final 4 1/2 minutes to help the Wizards finish their rally from a 20-point first-quarter deficit and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 on Thursday night.
Kyle Kuzma &mdash; who had 16 points on just 6-for-21 shooting &mdash; swished a top-of-the-key fadeaway from deep for a 107-106 lead that was Washington&rsquo;s first of the game with 1:14 to go.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to keep building these habits that we&rsquo;re doing right now,&rdquo; Kuzma said. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re playing great team ball right now.&rdquo;
Beal, who topped the 30-point mark for the third time in four games, followed with a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left &mdash; after a miss by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards &mdash; to make it 110-106.
&ldquo;Probably this is the best game for me this season so far, because of how we showed our heart, we stayed in the game, we kept playing,&rdquo; said Kristaps Porzingis, who had 14 points. &ldquo;Some guys were already like checked out a little bit. We locked back in and we pulled it out of somewhere.&rdquo;
Corey Kispert scored 15 points off the bench to offset off nights by Kuzma and Porzingis and help the Wizards (28-30) build on their recent momentum entering the All-Star break. They have won 10 of their last 14 and hold the 10th and final spot for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re still learning each other, but now we feel like we can take off running,&rdquo; Beal said.
Edwards had 18 of his 34 points in the first quarter to help the Timberwolves surge to a 30-10 lead. They were still ahead 99-92 with 4:38 left after three free throws by Kyle Anderson, before Beal hit a wide-open 3-pointer to spark his late surge.
Rudy Gobert had 17 points and 19 rebounds for the Timberwolves (31-30), who were derailed by their characteristic mid-game lulls and missed an opportunity to move a season-best three games above the .500 mark.
With the Wizards wearing their hot pink &ldquo;City Edition&rdquo; uniforms in an&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.nba.com/news/washington-wizards-city-edition" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ode to the city&rsquo;s iconic cherry blossoms</a>, the Wolves were the hotter team for most of the game while new point guard Mike Conley continued to help Gobert find his offensive groove with the pick-and-rolls and lob passes they perfected together in Utah.
But Edwards &mdash; who had six turnovers &mdash; began to make some rash decisions after his strong start, and the Wolves were outrebounded and outhustled down the stretch.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve done it time and time again,&rdquo; said Anderson, who had 18 points and eight rebounds. &ldquo;It stings like hell.&rdquo;
The Wizards have won seven straight games against the Wolves, extending the longest streak in the history of their series.
&ldquo;I feel like it&rsquo;s the same story,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We get a lead, and then we just lose the urgency.&rdquo;
ANT GOES MARCHING
Edwards, who was added to the All-Star roster last week&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/milwaukee-bucks-los-angeles-lakers-nba-sports-basketball-fb087f5e86828d2c0a2949964ac67a65">as an injury replacement</a>, was&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://apnews.com/article/sports-wnba-basketball-lauri-markkanen-joel-embiid-nikola-jokic-107533176444f092fed0c7996a8e328f">headed to Utah</a>&nbsp;for the annual in-season showcase this weekend while his teammates scattered on vacations.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-62 apnews_article_midarticle_3" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">&nbsp;</div>

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; The Washington Wizards looked ready to start their All-Star break early, before Bradley Beal helped snap them out of their funk.
This new-look, still-adjusting team has been starting to turn a corner.
Beal had 13 of his 35 points over the final 4 1/2 minutes to help the Wizards finish their rally from a 20-point first-quarter deficit and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 on Thursday night.
Kyle Kuzma &mdash; who had 16 points on just 6-for-21 shooting &mdash; swished a top-of-the-key fadeaway from deep for a 107-106 lead that was Washington&rsquo;s first of the game with 1:14 to go.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to keep building these habits that we&rsquo;re doing right now,&rdquo; Kuzma said. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re playing great team ball right now.&rdquo;
Beal, who topped the 30-point mark for the third time in four games, followed with a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left &mdash; after a miss by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards &mdash; to make it 110-106.
&ldquo;Probably this is the best game for me this season so far, because of how we showed our heart, we stayed in the game, we kept playing,&rdquo; said Kristaps Porzingis, who had 14 points. &ldquo;Some guys were already like checked out a little bit. We locked back in and we pulled it out of somewhere.&rdquo;
Corey Kispert scored 15 points off the bench to offset off nights by Kuzma and Porzingis and help the Wizards (28-30) build on their recent momentum entering the All-Star break. They have won 10 of their last 14 and hold the 10th and final spot for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re still learning each other, but now we feel like we can take off running,&rdquo; Beal said.
Edwards had 18 of his 34 points in the first quarter to help the Timberwolves surge to a 30-10 lead. They were still ahead 99-92 with 4:38 left after three free throws by Kyle Anderson, before Beal hit a wide-open 3-pointer to spark his late surge.
Rudy Gobert had 17 points and 19 rebounds for the Timberwolves (31-30), who were derailed by their characteristic mid-game lulls and missed an opportunity to move a season-best three games above the .500 mark.
With the Wizards wearing their hot pink &ldquo;City Edition&rdquo; uniforms in an&nbsp;<a class="paragraph-link" href="https://www.nba.com/news/washington-wizards-city-edition" target="_blank" rel="noopener noreferrer">ode to the city&rsquo;s iconic cherry blossoms</a>, the Wolves were the hotter team for most of the game while new point guard Mike Conley continued to help Gobert find his offensive groove with the pick-and-rolls and lob passes they perfected together in Utah.
But Edwards &mdash; who had six turnovers &mdash; began to make some rash decisions after his strong start, and the Wolves were outrebounded and outhustled down the stretch.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve done it time and time again,&rdquo; said Anderson, who had 18 points and eight rebounds. &ldquo;It stings like hell.&rdquo;
The Wizards have won seven straight games against the Wolves, extending the longest streak in the history of their series.
&ldquo;I feel like it&rsquo;s the same story,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We get a lead, and then we just lose the urgency.&rdquo;
ANT GOES MARCHING
Edwards, who was added to the All-Star roster last week&nbsp;as an injury replacement, was&nbsp;headed to Utah&nbsp;for the annual in-season showcase this weekend while his teammates scattered on vacations.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-62 apnews_article_midarticle_3" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">
&ldquo;I think moments like that are perfectly suited for him,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. &ldquo;He enjoys that type of environment. It&rsquo;ll be fun for him in and around all of those other players. He&rsquo;ll get treated like the star that he is becoming.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Wizards: Beal, who became the second player in franchise history to hit the 15,000-point mark for his career in a loss on Monday at Golden State, went 14 for 28 from the floor. ... Kispert went 4 for 6 from 3-point range. He was 5 for 22 over his last five games.
Timberwolves: Edwards had only one higher-scoring first quarter in his three-year career, with 19 points at Orlando on Nov. 16. ... Towns missed his 40th straight game with the right calf strain he suffered when Minnesota played at Washington on Nov. 28.
</div>

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) &mdash; The Washington Wizards looked ready to start their All-Star break early, before Bradley Beal helped snap them out of their funk.
This new-look, still-adjusting team has been starting to turn a corner.
Beal had 13 of his 35 points over the final 4 1/2 minutes to help the Wizards finish their rally from a 20-point first-quarter deficit and beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106 on Thursday night.
Kyle Kuzma &mdash; who had 16 points on just 6-for-21 shooting &mdash; swished a top-of-the-key fadeaway from deep for a 107-106 lead that was Washington&rsquo;s first of the game with 1:14 to go.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve just got to keep building these habits that we&rsquo;re doing right now,&rdquo; Kuzma said. &ldquo;I think we&rsquo;re playing great team ball right now.&rdquo;
Beal, who topped the 30-point mark for the third time in four games, followed with a 3-pointer with 37 seconds left &mdash; after a miss by Minnesota&rsquo;s Anthony Edwards &mdash; to make it 110-106.
&ldquo;Probably this is the best game for me this season so far, because of how we showed our heart, we stayed in the game, we kept playing,&rdquo; said Kristaps Porzingis, who had 14 points. &ldquo;Some guys were already like checked out a little bit. We locked back in and we pulled it out of somewhere.&rdquo;
Corey Kispert scored 15 points off the bench to offset off nights by Kuzma and Porzingis and help the Wizards (28-30) build on their recent momentum entering the All-Star break. They have won 10 of their last 14 and hold the 10th and final spot for the Eastern Conference playoffs.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;re still learning each other, but now we feel like we can take off running,&rdquo; Beal said.
Edwards had 18 of his 34 points in the first quarter to help the Timberwolves surge to a 30-10 lead. They were still ahead 99-92 with 4:38 left after three free throws by Kyle Anderson, before Beal hit a wide-open 3-pointer to spark his late surge.
Rudy Gobert had 17 points and 19 rebounds for the Timberwolves (31-30), who were derailed by their characteristic mid-game lulls and missed an opportunity to move a season-best three games above the .500 mark.
With the Wizards wearing their hot pink &ldquo;City Edition&rdquo; uniforms in an&nbsp;ode to the city&rsquo;s iconic cherry blossoms, the Wolves were the hotter team for most of the game while new point guard Mike Conley continued to help Gobert find his offensive groove with the pick-and-rolls and lob passes they perfected together in Utah.
But Edwards &mdash; who had six turnovers &mdash; began to make some rash decisions after his strong start, and the Wolves were outrebounded and outhustled down the stretch.
&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve done it time and time again,&rdquo; said Anderson, who had 18 points and eight rebounds. &ldquo;It stings like hell.&rdquo;
The Wizards have won seven straight games against the Wolves, extending the longest streak in the history of their series.
&ldquo;I feel like it&rsquo;s the same story,&rdquo; Gobert said. &ldquo;We get a lead, and then we just lose the urgency.&rdquo;
ANT GOES MARCHING
Edwards, who was added to the All-Star roster last week&nbsp;as an injury replacement, was&nbsp;headed to Utah&nbsp;for the annual in-season showcase this weekend while his teammates scattered on vacations.
<div class="Component-dfp-0-2-62 apnews_article_midarticle_3" data-card-id="sovrn-article-midarticle">
&ldquo;I think moments like that are perfectly suited for him,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. &ldquo;He enjoys that type of environment. It&rsquo;ll be fun for him in and around all of those other players. He&rsquo;ll get treated like the star that he is becoming.&rdquo;
TIP-INS
Wizards: Beal, who became the second player in franchise history to hit the 15,000-point mark for his career in a loss on Monday at Golden State, went 14 for 28 from the floor. ... Kispert went 4 for 6 from 3-point range. He was 5 for 22 over his last five games.
Timberwolves: Edwards had only one higher-scoring first quarter in his three-year career, with 19 points at Orlando on Nov. 16. ... Towns missed his 40th straight game with the right calf strain he suffered when Minnesota played at Washington on Nov. 28.
</div>

Bradley Beal scored 35 points to help the Washington Wizards rally from a 20-point deficit to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 114-106.

Beal, Wizards overcome 20-point deficit to beat Timberwolves

Anthony Edwards and D&rsquo;Angelo Russell combined for 59 points to help the Minnesota Timberwolves overcome a rough night for Karl-Anthony Towns and beat the Los Angeles Clippers 109-104 in a play-in game on Tuesday night.
Edwards scored 30 points with five 3-pointers and Russell had 29 points and six assists to send the Wolves to the No. 7 seed in the Western Conference and a first-round matchup with Memphis.
Paul George finished with 34 points after shooting 2 for 10 in the first half for the Clippers, who have a second chance to make the playoffs with a home game on Friday for the No. 8 seed against either New Orleans or San Antonio. Reggie Jackson (17 points) and Norman Powell (16 points) did their part in stretches, but the Clippers failed to put the Timberwolves away when they were struggling through the first half.
Towns had only 11 points on 3-for-11 shooting and fouled out midway through the fourth quarter, but his sidekicks were more than up to the challenge.
Jackson&rsquo;s 3-pointer gave the Clippers their largest lead of the game at 93-83 with 8:54 remaining, but about 4 minutes later Russell knocked down the go-ahead 3-pointer for a 97-95 advantage the Wolves never relinquished. He saluted the crowd for the punctuation. Edwards followed with a tomahawk dunk after blowing by Powell at the top of the key.
The fans were fired up for this fast-paced, fast-improving team that&rsquo;s headed to the playoffs for the second time in 17 years, but the buzz wore off a bit in the third quarter while George found his groove with a smooth 15 points.
Then Towns fouled out with 7:34 to go, less than 2 minutes after he had just checked back in.
The Clippers have played all season without star Kawhi Leonard while he recovers from a repaired ACL for the injury he suffered in the second round of the playoffs last year, but the recent return of George and Powell from their long-term injuries have helped them come closer to their form of last summer when they reached the Western Conference finals. Powell, in a super-sub role, was a trade-deadline acquisition from Portland.
The Clippers had success disrupting Towns during the regular season when they won three of the four matchups, losing only in January when George was out, and they spared no energy attacking the two-time All-Star center from every which way. Nicolas Batum was his primary tormentor, but most of the Clippers had a hand in it.
Towns failed to make a basket in the first half for the first time in more than three years, an 0-for-7 clunker. His only points came on a pair of free throws, and he flashed a sarcastic smile and pumped his first after getting that call.
STICKING WITH IT
The Wolves trailed 45-38 when Towns exited with his fourth foul with 3:48 left before halftime, but there was a delay less than a minute later after a woman from the crowd sneaked onto the court during a dead ball on the other end. Staging an animal rights protest, she glued her hand to the hardwood along the baseline and sprawled out before security was able to pry her away.
The Timberwolves took advantage of the extended pause. Russell hit two mid-range floaters and a 3-pointer over the balance of the half to help stake them to a 53-51 lead at the break.
BEVERLEY ILLS
The most central figure in this matchup might have been Timberwolves guard Patrick Beverley, the relentless defender and ace agitator who spent the last four seasons with the Clippers.
The NBA announced a $25,000 fine for Beverley shortly before tipoff for his &ldquo;improper conduct&rdquo; in Minnesota&rsquo;s last game toward referee David Guthrie, at whom he yelled, &ldquo;You&rsquo;re trash!&rdquo; on his way off the court following his ejection for a second technical foul.
Beverley picked up a technical in the third quarter of this game after tussling with Marcus Morris Sr. Beverley hit an off-balance 3-pointer at the shot-clock buzzer later in the period, but that crowd-pleaser was later erased by replay review because it came a split-second too late.
TIP-INS
Clippers: Backup guard Luke Kennard, their fifth-leading scorer, stayed home because of a hamstring injury.
Timberwolves: Backup forward Taurean Prince was out with a swollen knee.
UP NEXT
Clippers: Host the San Antonio-New Orleans winner on Friday night. The Spurs play at the Pelicans on Wednesday night in an elimination game.
Timberwolves: Game 1 in Memphis is on Saturday afternoon.

Anthony Edwards and D’Angelo Russell combined for 59 points to help the Wolves overcome a rough night for Karl-Anthony Towns.

Edwards, Russell carry Wolves past Clippers in Play-In game

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — For all the strides the Minnesota Timberwolves made this season on both ends of the floor, proving themselves as a team on the rise with plenty of untapped potential, their entry into the NBA playoffs has still yet to be secured.
Paul George and the Los Angeles Clippers present a significant roadblock. 
“He takes them to a whole other level,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.
The confident team that reached the Western Conference finals last year — and beat the Wolves three times in November when George was healthy — has the seven-time All-Star back in the lineup after a three-month absence with an elbow injury.
The Clippers visit the Wolves on Tuesday night in a play-in game for the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with Memphis. The loser must turn around and beat the San Antonio-New Orleans winner to get the No. 8 seed and a matchup with league-leading Phoenix, or else begin their offseason with the rest of the lottery-bound teams.
“We stop Paul George, we win the game,” said Anthony Edwards, who will likely have the primary responsibility of guarding the 12-year veteran wing.
George had 76 points, 25 rebounds, 18 assists and four steals over those three earlier victories by 11, 20 and 27 points. Minnesota won by 18 in the last matchup in January when George was out.
The Clippers, who finished four games behind the Wolves, have measurably more postseason experience to counteract the home-court advantage.
“I don’t really believe in that,” LA coach Tyronn Lue said. “One game, anyone can get hot or we could have a bad shooting night. We can’t ease into the game. We've got to be ready to go from the jump.”
The Clippers recently welcomed back another integral player, Norman Powell, from a broken foot that sidelined him for 22 games shortly after he was acquired in a trade with Portland. 
“We're in a good place,” Lue said. “Got to continue playing the right way.”
The Wolves only have Karl-Anthony Towns left from their 2017-18 team that lost in the first round to Houston, the only appearance in the playoffs since 2004 for the long-woebegone franchise. The fans have begun to come back and make the arena loud again, with Towns, Edwards and the rest of the roster giving them reasons to repeat their visits.
“This is a great sports town,” said Finch, who signed a multi-year contract extension on Monday. “If you play hard and you play the right way and you do the right things, they’ll support you.”
WELL-VERSED
The addition of defensive ace and emotional leader Patrick Beverley this season has given the Wolves a big boost, and he's conveniently the most knowledgeable person in the organization about the ins and outs of the Clippers. Beverley spent the previous four seasons with LA. Two trades — the first one to Memphis — sent him to Minnesota.
“He talks a lot of trash, but he can back it all up,” Towns said. “So shoutout to him, what he’s done, what he’s brought this team.”
ROUGH STUFF
The Clippers were able to disrupt Towns and his flow with the offense in their matchups this season, one of the first opponents to find success by sending a smaller forward — in their case, Nicolas Batum — to defend the All-Star center with a physical approach to the post.
“The Batum wrestling match” was how Finch described it, with a wry smile.
KAWHI NOT?
On top of missing George and Powell for long stretches this season, the Clippers have been without Kawhi Leonard the entire time. The two-time NBA Finals MVP is still rehabilitating the torn right ACL he suffered in the second round of last year's playoffs.
Lue has given mostly vague answers to questions about Leonard’s status, but the Clippers have not ruled him out for a return at any point during the playoffs.
COFFEY BREWING
Clippers guard Amir Coffey took advantage of increased playing time amid the injuries, and he'll have a chance to show off his development in his home state. The former Gophers star was the Minnesota AP Player of the Year for Hopkins High School in 2016.
“Going back home, the most important game of the season, having my people in the crowd, hopefully we can come out with a win,” said Coffey, who started 30 games this season and shot 54.2% from the field.
He played at Target Center in the Class 4A state semifinals his sophomore year, a four-overtime game he won by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XXjHoHjN94">swishing a tiebreaking shot from well behind half court to beat the buzzer</a>.
"Probably one of the craziest shots I made,” Coffey said.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

For all the strides the Minnesota Timberwolves made this season on both ends of the floor, proving themselves as a team on the rise with plenty of untapped potential, their entry into the NBA playoffs has still yet to be secured.
Paul George and the Los Angeles Clippers present a significant roadblock.
&ldquo;He takes them to a whole other level,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.
The confident team that reached the Western Conference finals last year &mdash; and beat the Wolves three times in November when George was healthy &mdash; has the seven-time All-Star back in the lineup after a three-month absence with an elbow injury.
The Clippers visit the Wolves on Tuesday night in a play-in game for the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with Memphis. The loser must turn around and beat the San Antonio-New Orleans winner to get the No. 8 seed and a matchup with league-leading Phoenix, or else begin their offseason with the rest of the lottery-bound teams.
&ldquo;We stop Paul George, we win the game,&rdquo; said Anthony Edwards, who will likely have the primary responsibility of guarding the 12-year veteran wing.
George had 76 points, 25 rebounds, 18 assists and four steals over those three earlier victories by 11, 20 and 27 points. Minnesota won by 18 in the last matchup in January when George was out.
The Clippers, who finished four games behind the Wolves, have measurably more postseason experience to counteract the home-court advantage.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really believe in that,&rdquo; LA coach Tyronn Lue said. &ldquo;One game, anyone can get hot or we could have a bad shooting night. We can&rsquo;t ease into the game. We've got to be ready to go from the jump.&rdquo;
The Clippers recently welcomed back another integral player, Norman Powell, from a broken foot that sidelined him for 22 games shortly after he was acquired in a trade with Portland.
&ldquo;We're in a good place,&rdquo; Lue said. &ldquo;Got to continue playing the right way.&rdquo;
The Wolves only have Karl-Anthony Towns left from their 2017-18 team that lost in the first round to Houston, the only appearance in the playoffs since 2004 for the long-woebegone franchise. The fans have begun to come back and make the arena loud again, with Towns, Edwards and the rest of the roster giving them reasons to repeat their visits.
&ldquo;This is a great sports town,&rdquo; said Finch, who signed a multi-year contract extension on Monday. &ldquo;If you play hard and you play the right way and you do the right things, they&rsquo;ll support you.&rdquo;
WELL-VERSED
The addition of defensive ace and emotional leader Patrick Beverley this season has given the Wolves a big boost, and he's conveniently the most knowledgeable person in the organization about the ins and outs of the Clippers. Beverley spent the previous four seasons with LA. Two trades &mdash; the first one to Memphis &mdash; sent him to Minnesota.
&ldquo;He talks a lot of trash, but he can back it all up,&rdquo; Towns said. &ldquo;So shoutout to him, what he&rsquo;s done, what he&rsquo;s brought this team.&rdquo;
ROUGH STUFF
The Clippers were able to disrupt Towns and his flow with the offense in their matchups this season, one of the first opponents to find success by sending a smaller forward &mdash; in their case, Nicolas Batum &mdash; to defend the All-Star center with a physical approach to the post.
&ldquo;The Batum wrestling match&rdquo; was how Finch described it, with a wry smile.
KAWHI NOT?
On top of missing George and Powell for long stretches this season, the Clippers have been without Kawhi Leonard the entire time. The two-time NBA Finals MVP is still rehabilitating the torn right ACL he suffered in the second round of last year's playoffs.
Lue has given mostly vague answers to questions about Leonard&rsquo;s status, but the Clippers have not ruled him out for a return at any point during the playoffs.
COFFEY BREWING
Clippers guard Amir Coffey took advantage of increased playing time amid the injuries, and he'll have a chance to show off his development in his home state. The former Gophers star was the Minnesota AP Player of the Year for Hopkins High School in 2016.
&ldquo;Going back home, the most important game of the season, having my people in the crowd, hopefully we can come out with a win,&rdquo; said Coffey, who started 30 games this season and shot 54.2% from the field.
He played at Target Center in the Class 4A state semifinals his sophomore year, a four-overtime game he won by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XXjHoHjN94">swishing a tiebreaking shot from well behind half court to beat the buzzer</a>.
"Probably one of the craziest shots I made,&rdquo; Coffey said.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

For all the strides the Minnesota Timberwolves made this season on both ends of the floor, proving themselves as a team on the rise with plenty of untapped potential, their entry into the NBA playoffs has still yet to be secured.
Paul George and the Los Angeles Clippers present a significant roadblock.
&ldquo;He takes them to a whole other level,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.
The confident team that reached the Western Conference finals last year &mdash; and beat the Wolves three times in November when George was healthy &mdash; has the seven-time All-Star back in the lineup after a three-month absence with an elbow injury.
The Clippers visit the Wolves on Tuesday night in a play-in game for the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with Memphis. The loser must turn around and beat the San Antonio-New Orleans winner to get the No. 8 seed and a matchup with league-leading Phoenix, or else begin their offseason with the rest of the lottery-bound teams.
&ldquo;We stop Paul George, we win the game,&rdquo; said Anthony Edwards, who will likely have the primary responsibility of guarding the 12-year veteran wing.
George had 76 points, 25 rebounds, 18 assists and four steals over those three earlier victories by 11, 20 and 27 points. Minnesota won by 18 in the last matchup in January when George was out.
The Clippers, who finished four games behind the Wolves, have measurably more postseason experience to counteract the home-court advantage.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really believe in that,&rdquo; LA coach Tyronn Lue said. &ldquo;One game, anyone can get hot or we could have a bad shooting night. We can&rsquo;t ease into the game. We've got to be ready to go from the jump.&rdquo;
The Clippers recently welcomed back another integral player, Norman Powell, from a broken foot that sidelined him for 22 games shortly after he was acquired in a trade with Portland.
&ldquo;We're in a good place,&rdquo; Lue said. &ldquo;Got to continue playing the right way.&rdquo;
The Wolves only have Karl-Anthony Towns left from their 2017-18 team that lost in the first round to Houston, the only appearance in the playoffs since 2004 for the long-woebegone franchise. The fans have begun to come back and make the arena loud again, with Towns, Edwards and the rest of the roster giving them reasons to repeat their visits.
&ldquo;This is a great sports town,&rdquo; said Finch, who signed a multi-year contract extension on Monday. &ldquo;If you play hard and you play the right way and you do the right things, they&rsquo;ll support you.&rdquo;
WELL-VERSED
The addition of defensive ace and emotional leader Patrick Beverley this season has given the Wolves a big boost, and he's conveniently the most knowledgeable person in the organization about the ins and outs of the Clippers. Beverley spent the previous four seasons with LA. Two trades &mdash; the first one to Memphis &mdash; sent him to Minnesota.
&ldquo;He talks a lot of trash, but he can back it all up,&rdquo; Towns said. &ldquo;So shoutout to him, what he&rsquo;s done, what he&rsquo;s brought this team.&rdquo;
ROUGH STUFF
The Clippers were able to disrupt Towns and his flow with the offense in their matchups this season, one of the first opponents to find success by sending a smaller forward &mdash; in their case, Nicolas Batum &mdash; to defend the All-Star center with a physical approach to the post.
&ldquo;The Batum wrestling match&rdquo; was how Finch described it, with a wry smile.
KAWHI NOT?
On top of missing George and Powell for long stretches this season, the Clippers have been without Kawhi Leonard the entire time. The two-time NBA Finals MVP is still rehabilitating the torn right ACL he suffered in the second round of last year's playoffs.
Lue has given mostly vague answers to questions about Leonard&rsquo;s status, but the Clippers have not ruled him out for a return at any point during the playoffs.
COFFEY BREWING
Clippers guard Amir Coffey took advantage of increased playing time amid the injuries, and he'll have a chance to show off his development in his home state. The former Gophers star was the Minnesota AP Player of the Year for Hopkins High School in 2016.
&ldquo;Going back home, the most important game of the season, having my people in the crowd, hopefully we can come out with a win,&rdquo; said Coffey, who started 30 games this season and shot 54.2% from the field.
He played at Target Center in the Class 4A state semifinals his sophomore year, a four-overtime game he won by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XXjHoHjN94">swishing a tiebreaking shot from well behind half court to beat the buzzer</a>.
"Probably one of the craziest shots I made,&rdquo; Coffey said.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

For all the strides the Minnesota Timberwolves made this season on both ends of the floor, proving themselves as a team on the rise with plenty of untapped potential, their entry into the NBA playoffs has still yet to be secured.
Paul George and the Los Angeles Clippers present a significant roadblock.
&ldquo;He takes them to a whole other level,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.
The confident team that reached the Western Conference finals last year &mdash; and beat the Wolves three times in November when George was healthy &mdash; has the seven-time All-Star back in the lineup after a three-month absence with an elbow injury.
The Clippers visit the Wolves on Tuesday night in a play-in game for the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with Memphis. The loser must turn around and beat the San Antonio-New Orleans winner to get the No. 8 seed and a matchup with league-leading Phoenix, or else begin their offseason with the rest of the lottery-bound teams.
&ldquo;We stop Paul George, we win the game,&rdquo; said Anthony Edwards, who will likely have the primary responsibility of guarding the 12-year veteran wing.
George had 76 points, 25 rebounds, 18 assists and four steals over those three earlier victories by 11, 20 and 27 points. Minnesota won by 18 in the last matchup in January when George was out.
The Clippers, who finished four games behind the Wolves, have measurably more postseason experience to counteract the home-court advantage.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really believe in that,&rdquo; LA coach Tyronn Lue said. &ldquo;One game, anyone can get hot or we could have a bad shooting night. We can&rsquo;t ease into the game. We've got to be ready to go from the jump.&rdquo;
The Clippers recently welcomed back another integral player, Norman Powell, from a broken foot that sidelined him for 22 games shortly after he was acquired in a trade with Portland.
&ldquo;We're in a good place,&rdquo; Lue said. &ldquo;Got to continue playing the right way.&rdquo;
The Wolves only have Karl-Anthony Towns left from their 2017-18 team that lost in the first round to Houston, the only appearance in the playoffs since 2004 for the long-woebegone franchise. The fans have begun to come back and make the arena loud again, with Towns, Edwards and the rest of the roster giving them reasons to repeat their visits.
&ldquo;This is a great sports town,&rdquo; said Finch, who signed a multi-year contract extension on Monday. &ldquo;If you play hard and you play the right way and you do the right things, they&rsquo;ll support you.&rdquo;
WELL-VERSED
The addition of defensive ace and emotional leader Patrick Beverley this season has given the Wolves a big boost, and he's conveniently the most knowledgeable person in the organization about the ins and outs of the Clippers. Beverley spent the previous four seasons with LA. Two trades &mdash; the first one to Memphis &mdash; sent him to Minnesota.
&ldquo;He talks a lot of trash, but he can back it all up,&rdquo; Towns said. &ldquo;So shoutout to him, what he&rsquo;s done, what he&rsquo;s brought this team.&rdquo;
ROUGH STUFF
The Clippers were able to disrupt Towns and his flow with the offense in their matchups this season, one of the first opponents to find success by sending a smaller forward &mdash; in their case, Nicolas Batum &mdash; to defend the All-Star center with a physical approach to the post.
&ldquo;The Batum wrestling match&rdquo; was how Finch described it, with a wry smile.
KAWHI NOT?
On top of missing George and Powell for long stretches this season, the Clippers have been without Kawhi Leonard the entire time. The two-time NBA Finals MVP is still rehabilitating the torn right ACL he suffered in the second round of last year's playoffs.
Lue has given mostly vague answers to questions about Leonard&rsquo;s status, but the Clippers have not ruled him out for a return at any point during the playoffs.
COFFEY BREWING
Clippers guard Amir Coffey took advantage of increased playing time amid the injuries, and he'll have a chance to show off his development in his home state. The former Gophers star was the Minnesota AP Player of the Year for Hopkins High School in 2016.
&ldquo;Going back home, the most important game of the season, having my people in the crowd, hopefully we can come out with a win,&rdquo; said Coffey, who started 30 games this season and shot 54.2% from the field.
He played at Target Center in the Class 4A state semifinals his sophomore year, a four-overtime game he won by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XXjHoHjN94">swishing a tiebreaking shot from well behind half court to beat the buzzer</a>.
"Probably one of the craziest shots I made,&rdquo; Coffey said.
___
More AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

For all the strides the Minnesota Timberwolves made this season on both ends of the floor, proving themselves as a team on the rise with plenty of untapped potential, their entry into the NBA playoffs has still yet to be secured.
Paul George and the Los Angeles Clippers present a significant roadblock.
&ldquo;He takes them to a whole other level,&rdquo; Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.
The confident team that reached the Western Conference finals last year &mdash; and beat the Wolves three times in November when George was healthy &mdash; has the seven-time All-Star back in the lineup after a three-month absence with an elbow injury.
The Clippers visit the Wolves on Tuesday night in a play-in game for the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with Memphis. The loser must turn around and beat the San Antonio-New Orleans winner to get the No. 8 seed and a matchup with league-leading Phoenix, or else begin their offseason with the rest of the lottery-bound teams.
&ldquo;We stop Paul George, we win the game,&rdquo; said Anthony Edwards, who will likely have the primary responsibility of guarding the 12-year veteran wing.
George had 76 points, 25 rebounds, 18 assists and four steals over those three earlier victories by 11, 20 and 27 points. Minnesota won by 18 in the last matchup in January when George was out.
The Clippers, who finished four games behind the Wolves, have measurably more postseason experience to counteract the home-court advantage.
&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t really believe in that,&rdquo; LA coach Tyronn Lue said. &ldquo;One game, anyone can get hot or we could have a bad shooting night. We can&rsquo;t ease into the game. We've got to be ready to go from the jump.&rdquo;
The Clippers recently welcomed back another integral player, Norman Powell, from a broken foot that sidelined him for 22 games shortly after he was acquired in a trade with Portland.
&ldquo;We're in a good place,&rdquo; Lue said. &ldquo;Got to continue playing the right way.&rdquo;
The Wolves only have Karl-Anthony Towns left from their 2017-18 team that lost in the first round to Houston, the only appearance in the playoffs since 2004 for the long-woebegone franchise. The fans have begun to come back and make the arena loud again, with Towns, Edwards and the rest of the roster giving them reasons to repeat their visits.
&ldquo;This is a great sports town,&rdquo; said Finch, who signed a multi-year contract extension on Monday. &ldquo;If you play hard and you play the right way and you do the right things, they&rsquo;ll support you.&rdquo;
WELL-VERSED
The addition of defensive ace and emotional leader Patrick Beverley this season has given the Wolves a big boost, and he's conveniently the most knowledgeable person in the organization about the ins and outs of the Clippers. Beverley spent the previous four seasons with LA. Two trades &mdash; the first one to Memphis &mdash; sent him to Minnesota.
&ldquo;He talks a lot of trash, but he can back it all up,&rdquo; Towns said. &ldquo;So shoutout to him, what he&rsquo;s done, what he&rsquo;s brought this team.&rdquo;
ROUGH STUFF
The Clippers were able to disrupt Towns and his flow with the offense in their matchups this season, one of the first opponents to find success by sending a smaller forward &mdash; in their case, Nicolas Batum &mdash; to defend the All-Star center with a physical approach to the post.
&ldquo;The Batum wrestling match&rdquo; was how Finch described it, with a wry smile.
KAWHI NOT?
On top of missing George and Powell for long stretches this season, the Clippers have been without Kawhi Leonard the entire time. The two-time NBA Finals MVP is still rehabilitating the torn right ACL he suffered in the second round of last year's playoffs.
Lue has given mostly vague answers to questions about Leonard&rsquo;s status, but the Clippers have not ruled him out for a return at any point during the playoffs.
COFFEY BREWING
Clippers guard Amir Coffey took advantage of increased playing time amid the injuries, and he'll have a chance to show off his development in his home state. The former Gophers star was the Minnesota AP Player of the Year for Hopkins High School in 2016.
&ldquo;Going back home, the most important game of the season, having my people in the crowd, hopefully we can come out with a win,&rdquo; said Coffey, who started 30 games this season and shot 54.2% from the field.
He played at Target Center in the Class 4A state semifinals his sophomore year, a four-overtime game he won by <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3XXjHoHjN94">swishing a tiebreaking shot from well behind half court to beat the buzzer</a>.
"Probably one of the craziest shots I made,&rdquo; Coffey said.

The Clippers visit the Wolves on Tuesday night in the West Play-In game for the No. 7 seed and a first-round date with Memphis.

Wolves get tough Play-In foe with George back for Clips

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and nine rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out in a 129-114 victory over the sputtering Golden State Warriors in a potential playoff series preview on Tuesday night.
D'Angelo Russell pitched in 22 points, and Malik Beasley added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota. The Timberwolves owned a 54-42 edge in points in the paint, too, with the banged-up Warriors mostly out of answers for slowing Towns down around the basket.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, but the league's career leader in 3-point shooting went just 5 for 16 from long range with several of his heaves way off the mark. Gary Payton II added 14 points for the Warriors, who have the NBA's second-best record but have lost six of eight games.
The Timberwolves (34-29), who entered the evening 3 1/2 games out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference with the play-in avoidance that comes with it, played without Anthony Edwards because of knee tendinitis. They still won their sixth straight game against the Warriors at home, never minding their 11-game losing streak to Golden State on the road for now, and moved a season-best five games above the .500 mark.
The Warriors (43-19), who are suddenly in quite the fight in trying to fend off Memphis (43-20) for second place, were without Klay Thompson for the second straight game because of an illness.
Nemanja Bjelica was held out with a bruised quadriceps, and Moses Moody — who started again at forward with Thompson sidelined — departed in the first quarter with a bruised left eye after a collision with Towns under the basket. Then there's the continued absence of Draymond Green and James Wiseman and the lack of depth to fill in the post.
Andrew Wiggins had eight points in the first 3:08 of the game against his former team, but he went quiet the rest of the way and finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
This matchup of the two most frequent 3-point shooting teams in the league was mostly in Minnesota's control, starting with an 18-5 run to close the first quarter. Russell converted a three-point play for a 68-56 lead just before halftime, and the Timberwolves took a 14-3 spurt well into the fourth quarter before Towns checked back in for the final stretch.
ABSENT ANT
Edwards missed a game to injury for the first time in his two-year career, having been out for six games earlier this season due to COVID-19. 
Coach Chris Finch said the team will have to manage the condition for the rest of the year and that “everything is on the table” in terms of an extended rest plan. Edwards went 3 for 28 from 3-point range and averaged only 10.4 points over the last five games.
“Its affected him, for sure, no doubt,” Finch said. “He doesn’t feel like he has the confidence or the explosion to do certain things in certain directions.”
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Payton has been playing through shin pain. Thompson, who could rejoin the team for the next game, remains on a 30-minute restriction in his ramp-up from a torn Achilles tendon that kept him out of the entire 2020-21 season. Green is still several weeks from returning from his back injury. Wiseman has been practicing with the team but has yet to play in 2021-22 after knee surgery.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Jordan Poole, who was 0 for 7 and missed all four of his 3-point tries on Sunday, was again the first man off the bench and went 1 for 6 from deep and had 12 points in 27 minutes. ... Andre Iguodala missed his sixth straight game with lower back tightness.
Timberwolves: This was the 12th game this season for Towns with 30-plus points and the 90th of his seven-year career. ... Jarred Vanderbilt, who was listed as questionable with left shoulder soreness, played 24 minutes and had two points and eight rebounds. 
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Dallas on Thursday night.
Timberwolves: Play at Oklahoma City on Friday night.
___
More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and nine rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out in a 129-114 victory over the sputtering Golden State Warriors in a potential playoff series preview on Tuesday night.
D'Angelo Russell pitched in 22 points, and Malik Beasley added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota. The Timberwolves owned a 54-42 edge in points in the paint, too, with the banged-up Warriors mostly out of answers for slowing Towns down around the basket.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, but the league's career leader in 3-point shooting went just 5 for 16 from long range with several of his heaves way off the mark. Gary Payton II added 14 points for the Warriors, who have the NBA's second-best record but have lost six of eight games.
The Timberwolves (34-29), who entered the evening 3 1/2 games out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference with the play-in avoidance that comes with it, played without Anthony Edwards because of knee tendinitis. They still won their sixth straight game against the Warriors at home, never minding their 11-game losing streak to Golden State on the road for now, and moved a season-best five games above the .500 mark.
The Warriors (43-19), who are suddenly in quite the fight in trying to fend off Memphis (43-20) for second place, were without Klay Thompson for the second straight game because of an illness.
Nemanja Bjelica was held out with a bruised quadriceps, and Moses Moody &mdash; who started again at forward with Thompson sidelined &mdash; departed in the first quarter with a bruised left eye after a collision with Towns under the basket. Then there's the continued absence of Draymond Green and James Wiseman and the lack of depth to fill in the post.
Andrew Wiggins had eight points in the first 3:08 of the game against his former team, but he went quiet the rest of the way and finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
This matchup of the two most frequent 3-point shooting teams in the league was mostly in Minnesota's control, starting with an 18-5 run to close the first quarter. Russell converted a three-point play for a 68-56 lead just before halftime, and the Timberwolves took a 14-3 spurt well into the fourth quarter before Towns checked back in for the final stretch.
ABSENT ANT
Edwards missed a game to injury for the first time in his two-year career, having been out for six games earlier this season due to COVID-19.
Coach Chris Finch said the team will have to manage the condition for the rest of the year and that &ldquo;everything is on the table&rdquo; in terms of an extended rest plan. Edwards went 3 for 28 from 3-point range and averaged only 10.4 points over the last five games.
&ldquo;Its affected him, for sure, no doubt,&rdquo; Finch said. &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t feel like he has the confidence or the explosion to do certain things in certain directions.&rdquo;
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Payton has been playing through shin pain. Thompson, who could rejoin the team for the next game, remains on a 30-minute restriction in his ramp-up from a torn Achilles tendon that kept him out of the entire 2020-21 season. Green is still several weeks from returning from his back injury. Wiseman has been practicing with the team but has yet to play in 2021-22 after knee surgery.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Jordan Poole, who was 0 for 7 and missed all four of his 3-point tries on Sunday, was again the first man off the bench and went 1 for 6 from deep and had 12 points in 27 minutes. ... Andre Iguodala missed his sixth straight game with lower back tightness.
Timberwolves: This was the 12th game this season for Towns with 30-plus points and the 90th of his seven-year career. ... Jarred Vanderbilt, who was listed as questionable with left shoulder soreness, played 24 minutes and had two points and eight rebounds.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Dallas on Thursday night.
Timberwolves: Play at Oklahoma City on Friday night.
___
More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and nine rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out in a 129-114 victory over the sputtering Golden State Warriors in a potential playoff series preview on Tuesday night.
D'Angelo Russell pitched in 22 points, and Malik Beasley added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota. The Timberwolves owned a 54-42 edge in points in the paint, too, with the banged-up Warriors mostly out of answers for slowing Towns down around the basket.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, but the league's career leader in 3-point shooting went just 5 for 16 from long range with several of his heaves way off the mark. Gary Payton II added 14 points for the Warriors, who have the NBA's second-best record but have lost six of eight games.
The Timberwolves (34-29), who entered the evening 3 1/2 games out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference with the play-in avoidance that comes with it, played without Anthony Edwards because of knee tendinitis. They still won their sixth straight game against the Warriors at home, never minding their 11-game losing streak to Golden State on the road for now, and moved a season-best five games above the .500 mark.
The Warriors (43-19), who are suddenly in quite the fight in trying to fend off Memphis (43-20) for second place, were without Klay Thompson for the second straight game because of an illness.
Nemanja Bjelica was held out with a bruised quadriceps, and Moses Moody &mdash; who started again at forward with Thompson sidelined &mdash; departed in the first quarter with a bruised left eye after a collision with Towns under the basket. Then there's the continued absence of Draymond Green and James Wiseman and the lack of depth to fill in the post.
Andrew Wiggins had eight points in the first 3:08 of the game against his former team, but he went quiet the rest of the way and finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
This matchup of the two most frequent 3-point shooting teams in the league was mostly in Minnesota's control, starting with an 18-5 run to close the first quarter. Russell converted a three-point play for a 68-56 lead just before halftime, and the Timberwolves took a 14-3 spurt well into the fourth quarter before Towns checked back in for the final stretch.
ABSENT ANT
Edwards missed a game to injury for the first time in his two-year career, having been out for six games earlier this season due to COVID-19.
Coach Chris Finch said the team will have to manage the condition for the rest of the year and that &ldquo;everything is on the table&rdquo; in terms of an extended rest plan. Edwards went 3 for 28 from 3-point range and averaged only 10.4 points over the last five games.
&ldquo;Its affected him, for sure, no doubt,&rdquo; Finch said. &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t feel like he has the confidence or the explosion to do certain things in certain directions.&rdquo;
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Payton has been playing through shin pain. Thompson, who could rejoin the team for the next game, remains on a 30-minute restriction in his ramp-up from a torn Achilles tendon that kept him out of the entire 2020-21 season. Green is still several weeks from returning from his back injury. Wiseman has been practicing with the team but has yet to play in 2021-22 after knee surgery.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Jordan Poole, who was 0 for 7 and missed all four of his 3-point tries on Sunday, was again the first man off the bench and went 1 for 6 from deep and had 12 points in 27 minutes. ... Andre Iguodala missed his sixth straight game with lower back tightness.
Timberwolves: This was the 12th game this season for Towns with 30-plus points and the 90th of his seven-year career. ... Jarred Vanderbilt, who was listed as questionable with left shoulder soreness, played 24 minutes and had two points and eight rebounds.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Dallas on Thursday night.
Timberwolves: Play at Oklahoma City on Friday night.
___
More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and nine rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out in a 129-114 victory over the sputtering Golden State Warriors in a potential playoff series preview on Tuesday night.
D'Angelo Russell pitched in 22 points, and Malik Beasley added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota. The Timberwolves owned a 54-42 edge in points in the paint, too, with the banged-up Warriors mostly out of answers for slowing Towns down around the basket.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, but the league's career leader in 3-point shooting went just 5 for 16 from long range with several of his heaves way off the mark. Gary Payton II added 14 points for the Warriors, who have the NBA's second-best record but have lost six of eight games.
The Timberwolves (34-29), who entered the evening 3 1/2 games out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference with the play-in avoidance that comes with it, played without Anthony Edwards because of knee tendinitis. They still won their sixth straight game against the Warriors at home, never minding their 11-game losing streak to Golden State on the road for now, and moved a season-best five games above the .500 mark.
The Warriors (43-19), who are suddenly in quite the fight in trying to fend off Memphis (43-20) for second place, were without Klay Thompson for the second straight game because of an illness.
Nemanja Bjelica was held out with a bruised quadriceps, and Moses Moody &mdash; who started again at forward with Thompson sidelined &mdash; departed in the first quarter with a bruised left eye after a collision with Towns under the basket. Then there's the continued absence of Draymond Green and James Wiseman and the lack of depth to fill in the post.
Andrew Wiggins had eight points in the first 3:08 of the game against his former team, but he went quiet the rest of the way and finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
This matchup of the two most frequent 3-point shooting teams in the league was mostly in Minnesota's control, starting with an 18-5 run to close the first quarter. Russell converted a three-point play for a 68-56 lead just before halftime, and the Timberwolves took a 14-3 spurt well into the fourth quarter before Towns checked back in for the final stretch.
ABSENT ANT
Edwards missed a game to injury for the first time in his two-year career, having been out for six games earlier this season due to COVID-19.
Coach Chris Finch said the team will have to manage the condition for the rest of the year and that &ldquo;everything is on the table&rdquo; in terms of an extended rest plan. Edwards went 3 for 28 from 3-point range and averaged only 10.4 points over the last five games.
&ldquo;Its affected him, for sure, no doubt,&rdquo; Finch said. &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t feel like he has the confidence or the explosion to do certain things in certain directions.&rdquo;
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Payton has been playing through shin pain. Thompson, who could rejoin the team for the next game, remains on a 30-minute restriction in his ramp-up from a torn Achilles tendon that kept him out of the entire 2020-21 season. Green is still several weeks from returning from his back injury. Wiseman has been practicing with the team but has yet to play in 2021-22 after knee surgery.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Jordan Poole, who was 0 for 7 and missed all four of his 3-point tries on Sunday, was again the first man off the bench and went 1 for 6 from deep and had 12 points in 27 minutes. ... Andre Iguodala missed his sixth straight game with lower back tightness.
Timberwolves: This was the 12th game this season for Towns with 30-plus points and the 90th of his seven-year career. ... Jarred Vanderbilt, who was listed as questionable with left shoulder soreness, played 24 minutes and had two points and eight rebounds.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Dallas on Thursday night.
Timberwolves: Play at Oklahoma City on Friday night.
___
More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and nine rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out in a 129-114 victory over the sputtering Golden State Warriors in a potential playoff series preview on Tuesday night.
D'Angelo Russell pitched in 22 points, and Malik Beasley added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota. The Timberwolves owned a 54-42 edge in points in the paint, too, with the banged-up Warriors mostly out of answers for slowing Towns down around the basket.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, but the league's career leader in 3-point shooting went just 5 for 16 from long range with several of his heaves way off the mark. Gary Payton II added 14 points for the Warriors, who have the NBA's second-best record but have lost six of eight games.
The Timberwolves (34-29), who entered the evening 3 1/2 games out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference with the play-in avoidance that comes with it, played without Anthony Edwards because of knee tendinitis. They still won their sixth straight game against the Warriors at home, never minding their 11-game losing streak to Golden State on the road for now, and moved a season-best five games above the .500 mark.
The Warriors (43-19), who are suddenly in quite the fight in trying to fend off Memphis (43-20) for second place, were without Klay Thompson for the second straight game because of an illness.
Nemanja Bjelica was held out with a bruised quadriceps, and Moses Moody &mdash; who started again at forward with Thompson sidelined &mdash; departed in the first quarter with a bruised left eye after a collision with Towns under the basket. Then there's the continued absence of Draymond Green and James Wiseman and the lack of depth to fill in the post.
Andrew Wiggins had eight points in the first 3:08 of the game against his former team, but he went quiet the rest of the way and finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
This matchup of the two most frequent 3-point shooting teams in the league was mostly in Minnesota's control, starting with an 18-5 run to close the first quarter. Russell converted a three-point play for a 68-56 lead just before halftime, and the Timberwolves took a 14-3 spurt well into the fourth quarter before Towns checked back in for the final stretch.
ABSENT ANT
Edwards missed a game to injury for the first time in his two-year career, having been out for six games earlier this season due to COVID-19.
Coach Chris Finch said the team will have to manage the condition for the rest of the year and that &ldquo;everything is on the table&rdquo; in terms of an extended rest plan. Edwards went 3 for 28 from 3-point range and averaged only 10.4 points over the last five games.
&ldquo;Its affected him, for sure, no doubt,&rdquo; Finch said. &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t feel like he has the confidence or the explosion to do certain things in certain directions.&rdquo;
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Payton has been playing through shin pain. Thompson, who could rejoin the team for the next game, remains on a 30-minute restriction in his ramp-up from a torn Achilles tendon that kept him out of the entire 2020-21 season. Green is still several weeks from returning from his back injury. Wiseman has been practicing with the team but has yet to play in 2021-22 after knee surgery.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Jordan Poole, who was 0 for 7 and missed all four of his 3-point tries on Sunday, was again the first man off the bench and went 1 for 6 from deep and had 12 points in 27 minutes. ... Andre Iguodala missed his sixth straight game with lower back tightness.
Timberwolves: This was the 12th game this season for Towns with 30-plus points and the 90th of his seven-year career. ... Jarred Vanderbilt, who was listed as questionable with left shoulder soreness, played 24 minutes and had two points and eight rebounds.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Dallas on Thursday night.
Timberwolves: Play at Oklahoma City on Friday night.
___
More AP NBA coverage: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA and https://twitter.com/AP_Sports

Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and nine rebounds for the Minnesota Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out in a 129-114 victory over the sputtering Golden State Warriors in a potential playoff series preview on Tuesday night.
D'Angelo Russell pitched in 22 points, and Malik Beasley added 20 points on 6-for-9 shooting from 3-point range for Minnesota. The Timberwolves owned a 54-42 edge in points in the paint, too, with the banged-up Warriors mostly out of answers for slowing Towns down around the basket.
Stephen Curry led Golden State with 34 points, but the league's career leader in 3-point shooting went just 5 for 16 from long range with several of his heaves way off the mark. Gary Payton II added 14 points for the Warriors, who have the NBA's second-best record but have lost six of eight games.
The Timberwolves (34-29), who entered the evening 3 1/2 games out of the No. 6 spot in the Western Conference with the play-in avoidance that comes with it, played without Anthony Edwards because of knee tendinitis. They still won their sixth straight game against the Warriors at home, never minding their 11-game losing streak to Golden State on the road for now, and moved a season-best five games above the .500 mark.
The Warriors (43-19), who are suddenly in quite the fight in trying to fend off Memphis (43-20) for second place, were without Klay Thompson for the second straight game because of an illness.
Nemanja Bjelica was held out with a bruised quadriceps, and Moses Moody &mdash; who started again at forward with Thompson sidelined &mdash; departed in the first quarter with a bruised left eye after a collision with Towns under the basket. Then there's the continued absence of Draymond Green and James Wiseman and the lack of depth to fill in the post.
Andrew Wiggins had eight points in the first 3:08 of the game against his former team, but he went quiet the rest of the way and finished with 12 points on 5-for-13 shooting.
This matchup of the two most frequent 3-point shooting teams in the league was mostly in Minnesota's control, starting with an 18-5 run to close the first quarter. Russell converted a three-point play for a 68-56 lead just before halftime, and the Timberwolves took a 14-3 spurt well into the fourth quarter before Towns checked back in for the final stretch.
ABSENT ANT
Edwards missed a game to injury for the first time in his two-year career, having been out for six games earlier this season due to COVID-19.
Coach Chris Finch said the team will have to manage the condition for the rest of the year and that &ldquo;everything is on the table&rdquo; in terms of an extended rest plan. Edwards went 3 for 28 from 3-point range and averaged only 10.4 points over the last five games.
&ldquo;Its affected him, for sure, no doubt,&rdquo; Finch said. &ldquo;He doesn&rsquo;t feel like he has the confidence or the explosion to do certain things in certain directions.&rdquo;
WOUNDED WARRIORS
Payton has been playing through shin pain. Thompson, who could rejoin the team for the next game, remains on a 30-minute restriction in his ramp-up from a torn Achilles tendon that kept him out of the entire 2020-21 season. Green is still several weeks from returning from his back injury. Wiseman has been practicing with the team but has yet to play in 2021-22 after knee surgery.
TIP-INS
Warriors: Jordan Poole, who was 0 for 7 and missed all four of his 3-point tries on Sunday, was again the first man off the bench and went 1 for 6 from deep and had 12 points in 27 minutes. ... Andre Iguodala missed his sixth straight game with lower back tightness.
Timberwolves: This was the 12th game this season for Towns with 30-plus points and the 90th of his seven-year career. ... Jarred Vanderbilt, who was listed as questionable with left shoulder soreness, played 24 minutes and had two points and eight rebounds.
UP NEXT
Warriors: Play at Dallas on Thursday night.
Timberwolves: Play at Oklahoma City on Friday night.

Karl-Anthony Towns had 39 points and 9 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who had their offense humming inside and out.

Towns has 39 points as Wolves surge past Warriors 129-114

KAT and the Timberwolves have some fresh reasons for optimism in 2021-22 after two abnormal NBA seasons due to the pandemic.

Emerging Edwards gives Towns, T-wolves infusion of optimism

For the first time since the end of last season, Wolves players spoke to the media and made their stance on the franchise's direction known.

Amid latest shakeup, Timberwolves seek stability with new owners

Dave Campbell is a writer for the Associated Press.