Toronto lit up the Timberwolves for 76 points in the first half and had 119 points with just under 10 minutes left in the game, but a gutsy comeback gave Minnesota a 128-126 win over the Raptors one night after losing a hard-fought game in Denver.
The Timberwolves trailed by 14 points – 119-105 – with 9:45 left in the fourth quarter. Then they rallied behind a trio of 3s from D’Angelo Russell before Anthony Edwards buried a 3 to tie the score 124-124 with 3:56 to play.
The game stayed locked 124-124 until Kyle Anderson hit a floater with 90 seconds to go. Scottie Barnes responded with a monster dunk and the game was tied again with 1 minute remaining.
Minnesota went ahead 128-126 on a pair of free throws by Russell with 9.9 seconds left and O.G. Anunoby last chance 3 clanked off the iron for an uncanny victory for the home team.
It was a balanced effort for the shorthanded Wolves.
- D’Angelo Russell: 25 points, 6 assists, 5-of-10 from 3
- Anthony Edwards: 23 points, 7 assists
- Kyle Anderson, 20 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists
- Jaden McDaniels: 18 points, 7 rebounds, 4-of-7 from 3
Minnesota was without Karl-Anthony Towns (calf) for the 26th straight game and Rudy Gobert for a second consecutive game because of a sore groin. Austin Rivers (knee) also missed his second game in a row and Jordan McLaughlin (calf) was watching from the bench for a 22nd straight game.
The Raptors shot the lights out all the way until they built the 119-105 lead. But they scored just seven points in the final 9:45. Despite that, they still shot 52.3% overall and 50% from 3-point land (14-of-28).
Up next: Timberwolves vs. Houston Rockets Saturday at 7 p.m.
Related: Report: Wolves exploring D’Lo trades, interested in Mike Conley
