Wolves overcome slow start, rally to narrow win over Heat
It was another slow start for the Timberwolves.
Despite its place atop the Western Conference standings, Minnesota has struggled out of the gates for much of the season, and its defense hasn’t been nearly as menacing away from the Target Center court.
That was true again on Monday, when Tyler Herro and the Miami Heat got off to a hot start at Kaseya Center and jumped to a 12-point halftime lead.
But once again the Wolves found a way, cutting that lead to six by the end of the third quarter and using a fourth-quarter rally to edge out the Heat 112-108 in Miami.
Anthony Edwards led Minnesota with a game-high 32 points — his second straight 30-point performance — and also had eight rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 18 points and eight boards, Naz Reid scored 15 points off the bench and Jaden McDaniels tallied 10 points, five rebounds and three blocks.
Mike Conley hit a 3-pointer with 8:36 left in the fourth quarter that gave Minnesota an 87-84 lead that was its first since taking a 4-2 advantage in the first quarter.
Conley finished with 12 points and six assists for the Wolves (20-5), who are off to a franchise-best start to the season.
Jimmy Butler, who missed each of the last four games against his former Timberwolves team, had 15 points, five rebounds and five assists. Herro led the Heat (15-12) with 25 points, and Bam Adebayo had 22 points, six rebounds and six assists.
Herro scored 17 of his points in the first half as Miami jumped out to a 33-22 lead in the first quarter and added one to its lead in the second frame to take a 66-54 advantage into the halftime break.
"First half, I didn't really like us," Timberwolves coach Chris Finch told reporters postgame. "We were soft, we looked confused at things that were simple."
But like in so many games this season, the Wolves started to find their rhythm in the third quarter, holding the Heat to just 17 points in the frame.
"Our second-half defense was everything," Finch said.
But as Minnesota battled back to take the lead in the fourth quarter, the Heat wouldn’t go down easy. Both teams traded baskets, with the Wolves unable to muster any kind of separation. But they also didn’t flinch.
Edwards hit big shot after big shot. Towns lobbed a pass to Rudy Gobert, which he threw down with authority. And Minnesota battled its way to its third straight win — and a record-setting start.
Final key stats
- Anthony Edwards: 32 points, 8 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, 2 blocks
- Karl-Anthony Towns: 18 points, 8 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal
- Naz Reid: 15 points, 4 rebounds, 1 assist, 1 steal, 1 block
- Mike Conley: 12 points, 6 assists, 1 rebound, 1 steal
- Jaden McDaniels: 10 points, 5 rebounds, 3 blocks, 2 assists
- Rudy Gobert: 9 points, 16 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals, 2 blocks
- Tyler Herro: 25 points, 3 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 steals
- Bam Adebayo: 22 points, 6 rebounds, 6 assists, 1 steal, 1 block
