The Minnesota Timberwolves on Sunday shrugged off the injury absence of Anthony Edwards to complete a come-from-behind 102-92 road victory over the Boston Celtics.
Minnesota trailed by 15 points early in the second quarter, but rallied decisively in the fourth with a 16-0 run to outscore the Celtics 26-15 and silence a 19,156 crowd at Boston’s TD Garden.
With Edwards missing due to a knee inflammation, Bones Hyland led Minnesota with 23 points off the bench, while Jaden McDaniels had 19 points and Ayo Dosunmu 17.
Photo: AFP
Minnesota improved to 44-28 and remain in sixth place in the Western Conference.
The New York Knicks improved to 47-25 to remain hard on the heels of the Celtics in the East with a 145-113 demolition of the Washington Wizards.
Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 26 points, 16 rebounds and three assists, while Jalen Brunson added 23 points as the Knicks cruised to a wire-to-wire victory over a Wizards team who have lost 16 straight games.
Washington are one place off the bottom of the Eastern Conference at 16-55 and are vying with the Indiana Pacers (15-56) for the worst record in the league.
In the Western Conference, Nikola Jokic’s 35th triple-double of the season powered the Denver Nuggets to a 128-112 defeat of the Portland Trail Blazers.
Jokic tallied 22 points, 14 rebounds and 14 assists, while Jamal Murray also scored 22 points, including four three-pointers.
Denver improved to 44-28 to remain in fifth place in the standings behind Houston (43-27).
Denver’s win marked a rare start for their first-choice starting lineup, with Cam Johnson, Aaron Gordon and Christian Braun alongside Jokic and Murray, with Peyton Watson also returning from the bench.
“We know we’ve got a good team and it’s been a while since we’ve had our full team,” Watson said. “I think when we’re healthy, nobody can beat us.”
Elsewhere, the Kings edged the Nets 126-122 and the Suns routed the Raptors 120-98.
Additional reporting by staff writer
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