Timberwolves scorch Phoenix with buzzer beater to win, 112-111

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The Minnesota Timberwolves arrived in Phoenix Tuesday night looking for their first season sweep of the Suns in the last 13 years. Coming off 5 wins in the last 7 games,  which included 3 point wins in the last two games, the Timberwolves looked to continue their forward momentum. A pair of 30 point, 10 rebound, 5 assist games from Karl-Anthony Towns lead the Wolves to victory against the Clippers in Los Angeles, and the Denver Nuggets at the Target Center. But the Suns entered Tuesday on a 2 game win streak of their own, including an impressive win against the Raptors in Toronto. The key to a Timberwolves victory lay in slowing down the Suns potent backcourt of Eric Bledsoe and Devin Booker, who both average more than 20 points per game.

The Timberwolves looked energetic to start off the game, with Rubio pushing the ball on every rebound, turnover, or even made shot early. The effort paid off with easy buckets in transition from both Andrew Wiggins and Towns, the former of whom scored 7 of the first 12 Timberwolves points. Marquese Chriss picked up 2 fouls in only 3 minutes, forcing Phoenix to sub in the slower Alex Len to guard Towns. But the Wolves weren’t able to sustain the early success, as a combination of sloppy turnovers, lack of effort on the defensive boards, and nice shooting by the Suns results in a 12-0 Phoenix run in the middle of the first. Ricky Rubio picked up his 2^nd foul, prompting Tom Thibodeau to bring Kris Dunn in. Many Timberwolves fans were hoping to see Kris Dunn build upon his nice game against the Nuggets, but the early returns were not pretty, as he went 0-3 from the field with 2 turnovers in only 3 minutes. The Timberwolves trailed 23-27 at the first quarter break.

The Timberwolves second unit started the 2^nd quarter looking completely hapless – as the Suns got off to a 7-0 start which included a number of turnovers and poor defensive rotations. But the Timberwolves caught a break from the officials on a bad pass from Nemanja Bjelica, and on the ensuing play Cole Aldrich took a pass at the three point line, and took the ball all the way to the rack:

Cleared for takeoff! ✈️ https://t.co/jxLhatmLBF

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) January 25, 2017

The Timberwolves appeared to wake up following this dunk, as they mounted a little run of their own to bring the game back to 37-38. Aldrich, who isn’t one to typically get a lot of recognition, continued to keep the 2^nd unit afloat until the rest of the squad could get it going offensively. Shabazz Muhammad started feeling it, scoring two layups in a row, and letting out a little whoop after each one that could be clearly heard on the FSN telecast. Notably, Tom Thibodeau gave Karl-Anthony Towns a good long rest, bringing him in with 6 minutes remaining in the 2^nd. The rest appeared to do him some good, as he immediately made a nice cut to the hoop and threw down a thundering dunk. Shabazz Muhammad was the centerpiece of the Wolves offense the rest of the way, scoring 15 points in the first half on 6-7 shooting. It was good to see Thibs keep the hot hand in the game, as Shabazz played 16 minutes in the first half. The Timberwolves went to the half up 59-56.

Karl Anthony Towns started off the second half by helping the team in an unconventional way – by taking a charge. He drew two additional fouls in the first 3 minutes of the quarter, again putting Marquese Chriss on the bench early. Tyson Chandler is the only one who kept the Suns in the game early in the 2^nd half, as he finished a double double with over 7 minutes remaining in the 3^rd quarter, and looked like he was bodying everyone else on the court. Even that was not enough, because the Timberwolves were bringing it on both the offensive and defensive ends of the court, led by who else? KAT:

N🚫PE! https://t.co/CatZhEDCox

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) January 25, 2017

The Timberwolves continued to play strong defense…for the first shot clock. Unfortunately, led by Chandler, the Suns got a ton of second chance points. The Timberwolves continued their strong and balanced offensive attack, ending the third quarter with an 8 point lead, 87-79.

Zach LaVine started the 4^th quarter with the 2^nd unit, immediately hitting a three pointer, which brought him into double figures, along with the four other starters and Shabazz Muhammad. Following a bad turnover, Jim Petersen went on a rant about the Timberwolves valuing the ball – to which they promptly made another bad turnover, leading to a Phoenix basket to bring it within 4, 90-86. Timeout Wolves.

Tom Thibodeau was clearly unhappy with the second unit, bringing Towns, Wiggins, and Rubio back into the game right away. The change stabilized the Timberwolves defensively, but they remained unable to score due to a surprising unwillingness to pass. That’s when Devin Booker decided to make his impact known – scoring 3 baskets in a row to put the Suns in the lead. The Timberwolves appeared to get their mojo back with a little 4-0 run, but then Booker hit another 3 off a miscommunication on defense.

A back and forth battle ensued for the remainder of the fourth quarter, as Andrew Wiggins led the Timberwolves, while Eric Bledsoe and Devin Booker led the way for the Suns. Following a three point play by Eric Bledsoe which tied the game, Andrew Wiggins continued his late game free throw woes, but managed to hit 1 of 2 to set up one final chance for the Suns. The Suns caught a massive break, as PJ Tucker sold a minor contact to draw the foul, and hit both shots to take the lead.

Everyone knew who was getting the ball on the final Timberwolves possession, and despite a lot of contact, Andrew Wiggins was able to hit the clutch game winner:

🚨 ANDREW WIGGINS 🚨 https://t.co/F7wIh8uhK4

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) January 25, 2017

Timberwolves 112, Suns 111.

Thoughts:

• The Timberwolves are really developing a great balanced scoring attack. Six players, including all five starters, were in double figures tonight. The Timberwolves assisted on over half their field goals, and when they needed a bucket with the shot clock running down, Andrew Wiggins slashing style was just the ticket.
• Cole Aldrich only played 8 minutes tonight, but his play in the second quarter was a big part of the early comeback the Timberwolves had. With Kris Dunn and Nemanja Bjelica having off nights, Aldrich gave the second unit a couple big baskets, and more importantly, energy.
• Gorgui Dieng flies under the radar with all the high profile players on the court, but his contributions can’t be ignored. Tonight, he scored 16 points on an efficient 8-11 shooting, and added 9 rebounds and 3 blocks.
• Tyson Chandler had a monster game, and exposed the Timberwolves a little bit on the defensive boards. Any time the Wolves missed a box out, he was there for the rebound, finishing the game with 22 points on 9-9 shooting, to go with 17 rebounds, 7 of them offensive.
• How much did PJ Tucker pay the refs tonight? Somehow he ended the game with zero fouls, despite his physical defense on KAT and the clear foul on Wiggins at the end of regulation. Combine that with the foul he drew on the Suns last possession, and it’s fair to say the refs had a blind eye turned his way for most of the night.

The Timberwolves went into Phoenix and got a huge win tonight – their 3^rd straight, which gives them a season sweep of the Suns. You could see the excitement for the team when Wiggins hit the buzzer beater tonight, and it feels like this could be a turning point for the 2016-17 Timberwolves. They have now won three straight games by a combined score of 7 points. If they are finally figuring out how to win close games – watch out. The Timberwolves next game is at home against the Indiana Pacers on Thursday at 7 pm central.