HOUSTON (AP) – Karl-Anthony Towns scored 31 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Houston Rockets 114-107 on Tuesday night for their third straight victory.
Anthony Edwards had 19 points and nine rebounds, and D’Angelo Russell added 15 points and seven assists for the Timberwolves, who have won three in a row for the first time since starting 3-0 in the 2019-20 season.
Minnesota won in Houston for the first time since Feb. 17, 2012, snapping a 14-game losing streak.
”It was a game that was going to come down to effort, getting an extra possession, good defense and getting your hand on a ball somehow,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said.
Kelly Olynyk had 28 points and nine rebounds for Houston. Christian Wood had 24 points and 18 rebounds, Jae’Sean Tate scored 20 points, and Kenyon Martin Jr. added 15 points off the bench.
The Rockets have lost five straight and 10 of their last 11. They’re 4-37 since Feb. 4.
Houston tied the game at 102 with 2:38 remaining. On the following play, Towns fouled out of the game with an offensive foul. He added seven rebounds and five assists.
Without Towns, Minnesota closed out the game on a 12-5 run.
”We just wanted to turn up the physicality on defense,” Minnesota’s Jarred Vanderbilt said. ”Offensively, we wanted to get our shot, and I felt like we did that down the stretch.”
The game matched the teams at the bottom of the Western Conference standings. Minnesota improved to 19-44, going 3 1/2 games up on Houston (15-47).
Finch said before the game that he told the team’s core players that there won’t be unnecessary rest days down the stretch as the team prioritizes building chemistry and an identity to take into the offseason.
”They’re putting their bodies out there, and they’re trying to hit first, whether it’s offense or defense,” Finch said. ”We grow into the game. We just need to start the game with that kind of physicality, and we’re getting better at that.”
Houston was playing its first game since Monday’s news that John Wall would likely miss the remainder of the season with a right hamstring strain. Wall has averaged 20.6 points and 6.9 assists in his first season in Houston.
The Timberwolves led 28-23 at the end of the first quarter and 59-50 at halftime. Houston outscored Minnesota 29-19 in the third quarter to enter the fourth with a 79-78 lead.
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