Lebron, Cavs don’t stop Timberwolves
Minnesota builds 41-point lead, coasts
MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Timberwolves, like so many lesser opponents over the years, have been largely unsuccessful in trying to best Lebron James.
This time, they built a lead on Cleveland as big as 41 points before the end of the third quarter. It was just another example of the difference Jimmy Butler has made on this promising team.
Andrew Wiggins scored 25 points in three quarters, Butler pitched in 21 points and tight defense on James, and the Timberwolves cruised to a 127-99 victory over the Cavaliers on Monday.
“We did what we’re supposed to do at home,” said Butler, who had nine assists and eight rebounds. “We’re a really good team. They’re a really good team. They missed a lot of shots that they normally make.
“We’ll see them again down the road, and hopefully we play the same exact way.”
Karl-anthony Towns (19 points, 12 rebounds) and Taj Gibson (16 points, 13 rebounds) were tenacious around the basket for the Timberwolves, who outrebounded the Cavs 56-37, their largest advantage of the season.
The Wolves had a 60-42 edge in points in the paint, and every starter but Towns took the fourth quarter off.
With their 116-98 win over New Orleans on Saturday, the Wolves have enjoyed a ferocious start to this five-game homestand.
James had 10 points on 4-for-8 shooting, taking his first loss at Minnesota in 13 games since Feb.
17, 2005. He posted a career-worst minus-39 rating.
“I’ve won a game and had a bad plus-minus before, so what does that matter?” James said. “I don’t give a damn about no damn plus/minus.”
The deficit for the Cavs reached 41 points after a dunk by Wiggins set up by a driving pass by Tyus Jones, who had grabbed his own miss from 3-point range.
The Wolves led 69-42 at halftime, matching their largest first-half score from two nights earlier, after a rainbow 3-pointer from the top of the key by Butler brought the fans to their feet.
That also tied the most points allowed by the Cavs in any half this season.
■ At New York, Demar Derozan notched a go-ahead three-point play with 26.1 seconds left in overtime and totaled 35 points for Toronto, which lost Kyle Lowry (acute back spasms) in the extra period. Spencer Dinwiddie scored 31 points for Brooklyn, which erased a 10-point deficit in the final 4½ minutes of regulation.
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At Los Angeles, C.J. Williams hit a 3-pointer with nine seconds left for Los Angeles, which was without top scorer Blake Griffin (concussion). Lou Williams had 34 points and Deandre Jordan 25 points and 18 rebounds for the Clippers, who led by 13 in the third quarter.
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At Oakland, Calif., Stephen Curry had 32 points and nine assists and Draymond Green 23 points and 10 assists for Golden State, which won its fifth straight. Nikola Jokic had 22 points, 12 rebounds and 11 assists for Denver, which had four 20-point scorers.
■ At Sacramento, Calif., Lamarcus Aldridge had 31 points and 12 rebounds for San Antonio, which overcame a 13-point second-half deficit. Davis Bertans scored 28 points on 11-for15 shooting, with six 3-pointers, for the Spurs.
■ At New Orleans, Demarcus Cousins scored 16 of his 20 points for after New Orleans teammate Anthony Davis left with a third-quarter injury to his right ankle. Davis had 30 points and 10 rebounds in 27 minutes.
■ At Indianapolis, Domantas Sabonis had 17 points and 10 rebounds for Indiana, which ended the first period on a 22-2 run and avenged a 21-point loss to Milwaukee last week.
■ At Chicago, Eric Gordon and Chris Paul each had 24 points and nine assists for Houston, which won for the third time in 10 games despite blowing a 21-point lead.
Raptors 114, Nets 113, OT — Clippers 108, Hawks 107 — Warriors 124, Nuggets 114 — Spurs 107, Kings 100 — Pelicans 112, Pistons 109 — Pacers 109, Bucks 96 — Rockets 116, Bulls 107 —