Timberwolves' Cohesive Defense, Interior Presence Prove Too Much for OKC Thunder
With the top two teams in the West facing off, the No. 2 Oklahoma City Thunder (11-6) was bested 106-103 to the No. 1 Minnesota Timberwolves (13-4) inside Target Center on Tuesday night.
This was the fourth and final contest for both teams in the NBA In-Season Tournament, leaving the Thunder at 1-3 and the Timberwolves at 3-1 in group play, retaining an opportunity to reach the knockout rounds in early December.
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander fronted the scoring load for Oklahoma City, notching 32 points on the night on 13-of-22 shooting and 6-for-6 from the free throw line.
Returning from injury for his first night back in 10 days, Jalen Williams added 10 points, three rebounds and three assists.
Rookie Cason Wallace was impressive in his 17 minutes, posting 10 points on 3-of-4 shooting.
Chet Holmgren struggled from the field, shooting just 6-of-20, but still produced 16 points points, eight rebounds and six assists.
Minnesota's Anthony Edwards posted a team-high 21 points with three 3-pointers before leaving the game early due to a heavy fall on a dunk attempt.
Rudy Gobert and Karl-Anthony Towns were a tough duo to nullify for Holmgren on the interior ultimately, as the pair combined for 30 points and 26 rebounds.
Naz Reid was vital for Minnesota as well, providing 15 points and seven boards.
The Thunder jumped out to an early six-point lead in the first five minutes of the game, though the Timberwolves would cut it down to a single point with just 1:47 to go in the quarter.
But a couple Gilgeous-Alexander lay-ins and a last-second 3-point make from Wallace would see Oklahoma City extend its lead to 10 by the end of the frame.
In the second, Oklahoma City would primarily control the quarter, maintaining at least a three-point lead throughout the whole 12 minutes.
A near perfect half from the field by Gilgeous-Alexander — 20 points on 8-of-10 shooting — parlayed with a fairly tame first two quarters from Edwards and Towns rendered an eight-point lead for the Thunder heading into halftime.
The third quarter was a different story though — at least in the beginning of it — as Edwards came out of the break in rhythm to register two threes and a couple layups in under four minutes forcing Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault to call a timeout.
Halfway into the quarter, Nickeil Alexander-Walker would help Minnesota take its first lead since two minutes into the first frame with a three, bringing the Timberwolves' 3-point percentage to 48% to that point.
Minnesota would take a blow later into the third, having Edwards go straight to the locker room after a long, hard fall colliding with Jaylin Williams who was attempting to draw a charge.
The Thunder wouldn't let anything get out of its control, limiting the hits the Timberwolves were throwing at them — Oklahoma City held a tight 78-76 advantage into the final frame.
The fourth quarter was neck and neck, immense shot after immense shot from both teams.
Aaron Wiggins was the shooter in two of those instances, hitting back to back 3-pointers to maintain a tied game, but Reid would push the Timberwolves back out to a three-point lead hitting a three of his own with a little over five minutes to play.
Down the stretch, Oklahoma City couldn't quite recoup its groove or contain Minnesota on the inside, leading to the Timberwolves eventual win.
Next, the Thunder is slated to take on the Los Angeles Lakers at 7 p.m. CT this Thursday inside Paycom Center
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