Timberwolves rally to beat Kings 111-106
MINNEAPOLIS – Karl-anthony Towns and the Minnesota Timberwolves have used their home court to quickly resolve any issues that have arisen this season on the road.
Sunday night didn’t offer the same immediate boost, but another win was welcome enough.
Towns scored 29 points, Jeff Teague added 12 points and 10 assists and Minnesota overcame an uncharacteristic sloppy performance at home to beat the Sacramento Kings 111-106.
It would have been weird to lose,” Towns said. “We didn’t lose, so it felt like the same thing, just a different recipe we cooked up tonight.”
The Timberwolves had 17 turnovers and allowed Sacramento 22 second-chance points, but prevailed after back-to- back road losses. Jimmy Butler scored 18 points, 15 in the second half, for Minnesota in its 13th straight home win.
De’aaron Fox had 23 points and Bogdan Bogdanovic chipped in 13 for the Kings, who have lost four of their past five games. Reserves Buddy Hield (16 points) and Kosta Koufos (12) provided a spark off the bench and helped Sacramento’s backups outscore Minnesota’s 41-21.
“At the end of the day, we had too many turnovers and not enough made free throws, and we fouled too much,” Kings coach Dave Joerger said. “They shot too many free throws. That’s what happens in a close game.”
The Wolves were 28 of 32 from the free-throw line, including 16 of 18 in the fourth quarter.
A sloppy game handling the ball by both teams led to a com- bined 36 turnovers. Sacramento had 19 turnovers, four off a season-high.
The Kings, who had wins at New Orleans, Miami and Orlando on their last trip, led most of the way. Minnesota clawed back for a lead in the second after trailing by as many as 10 points and had to do so again in the second half.
Towns and Teague hit backto-back 3-pointers with 6:17 left for a one-point lead at 93-92. Zach Randolph had a layup on the other end to give Sacramento another lead, but Jamal Crawford countered with a 3 for the Wolves, who wouldn’t trail again.
“We have capable shooters,” Crawford said. “We don’t shoot a lot of them, but for whatever reason, we’re shooting more of them and I think it’s paying off for us.”