Timberwolves cruise to 116-93 win over Trail Blazers behind Gobert's 24 points, 17 rebounds
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) Rudy Gobert had 24 points and 17 rebounds, Karl-Anthony Towns scored 23 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised to a 116-93 victory over the Portland Trail Blazers on Friday night.
Gobert returned after missing one game with left hip soreness. The twin tower duo of Gobert and Towns dominated an undermanned and young Portland squad that was on the second game of a back-to-back after losing 139-77 in Oklahoma City a night earlier, matching the fifth-biggest loss in NBA history.
Gobert and Towns combined to shoot 16 of 19 from the field and Towns was 3 of 3 from 3-point territory.
“We want to see each other succeed,” Gobert said. “We want to be able to win together. That’s unique. In this league, a lot of teams have egos. I think we’re both in a place in our career now where it’s about winning. Nothing else matters.”
Minnesota shot 55% as a team, while holding the Trail Blazers to 39%.
Mike Conley returned to the lineup after missing a game to rest and had nine points and 10 assists. Anthony Edwards finished with nine points for the Timberwolves, who ran their record to 14-3 at home this season. Gobert, Edwards and Conley didn't play in the fourth quarter.
“Just be professionals, just come out and play with the standards that we’ve established for ourselves since Day 1 here,” Towns said of facing a struggling Trail Blazers team. “Defensively and offensively finding, again, another gear and get back to our groove.”
Duop Reath had 14 points for Portland, which lost six of seven in finishing a seven-game road trip. Jerami Grant added 13 points for the Trail Blazers.
“When our schedule came out and I seen this trip, I said, ‘Dang, that’s a beast of a trip here,’ and I didn’t even know we would, obviously, be injured or hurt or whatever position we would be in,” Portland coach Chauncey Billups said. “Just a tough trip, but it turned out to be even tougher than I thought it would.”
Jabari Walker returned after missing four games with left knee tendinitis and had 17 points off the bench, but Portland’s DeAndre Ayton missed his 10th straight game with right knee tendinitis and Shaedon Sharpe missed the game with adductor soreness.
Malcolm Brogdon returned for the Trail Blazers after sitting out Thursday and had nine points off the bench. But leading scorer Anfernee Simons was 0-for-10 shooting and scored just five points.
Minnesota regained the top spot in the Western Conference with the win, but the Wolves had run into trouble recently, particularly on the offensive end. They had lost four of six games and were plagued by turnovers.
Minnesota started the day averaging the third-most turnovers in the league at 15.3 per game, contributing to a scoring average of 113.1 points per game which was 22nd in the NBA. The Wolves committed 16 turnovers on Friday but it didn’t cost them against the Blazers.
Minnesota scored the first 11 points of the game and never looked back. It led by 22 in the first quarter before Portland climbed within nine midway through the second. But the Wolves would lead by 36 in the fourth, an all-too-familiar feeling for the Blazers.
During its seven-game road trip, Portland lost by at least 21 six times. Its lone win came at Brooklyn, 134-127 in overtime.
UP NEXT
Trail Blazers: Return home against Phoenix on Sunday.
Timberwolves: Host the Los Angeles Clippers on Sunday.
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| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12:00 |  | Duop Reath vs. Rudy Gobert (Karl-Anthony Towns gains possession) | ||
| 11:44 | | +3 | Mike Conley makes three point jump shot (Jaden McDaniels assists) | 0-3 |
| 11:25 |  | Duop Reath misses three point jump shot | ||
| 11:22 | | Rudy Gobert defensive rebound | ||
| 11:15 | | +3 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes three point jump shot (Mike Conley assists) | 0-6 |
| 10:57 | | Duop Reath misses three point jump shot | ||
| 10:55 | | Karl-Anthony Towns defensive rebound | ||
| 10:47 | | Timberwolves turnover (8-second violation) | ||
| 10:36 | | Anthony Edwards blocks Jerami Grant's two point driving layup | ||
| 10:32 | | Mike Conley defensive rebound | ||
| 10:25 | | +3 | Mike Conley makes three point pullup jump shot (Anthony Edwards assists) | 0-9 |
| 10:22 | | Trail Blazers 60 second timeout | ||
| 10:06 | | Duop Reath misses two point bank jump shot | ||
| 10:04 | | Anthony Edwards defensive rebound | ||
| 9:56 | | +2 | Rudy Gobert makes two point cutting dunk (Jaden McDaniels assists) | 0-11 |
| 9:38 | | Rudy Gobert blocks Duop Reath's two point jump shot | ||
| 9:34 | | Mike Conley defensive rebound | ||
| 9:25 | | Duop Reath blocks Jaden McDaniels's two point driving layup | ||
| 9:25 | | Timberwolves offensive rebound | ||
| 9:19 | | Mike Conley misses three point jump shot | ||
| 9:15 | | Anfernee Simons defensive rebound | ||
| 9:08 | | Karl-Anthony Towns shooting foul (Toumani Camara draws the foul) | ||
| 9:08 | | +1 | Toumani Camara makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 1-11 |
| 9:08 | | Toumani Camara misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 9:06 | | Karl-Anthony Towns defensive rebound | ||
| 8:54 | | Duop Reath personal foul (Rudy Gobert draws the foul) | ||
| 8:46 | | +2 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes two point driving floating jump shot (Jaden McDaniels assists) | 1-13 |
| 8:46 | | Jerami Grant shooting foul (Karl-Anthony Towns draws the foul) | ||
| 8:46 | | +1 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 1-14 |
| 8:33 | | Scoot Henderson turnover (out of bounds bad pass) | ||
| 8:22 | | Jaden McDaniels turnover (bad pass) (Duop Reath steals) | ||
| 8:17 | | +2 | Duop Reath makes two point running dunk (Anfernee Simons assists) | 3-14 |
| 7:59 | | +2 | Rudy Gobert makes two point cutting layup (Mike Conley assists) | 3-16 |
| 7:49 | | Scoot Henderson turnover (bad pass) (Jaden McDaniels steals) | ||
| 7:46 | | Jaden McDaniels turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 7:32 | | Anthony Edwards shooting foul (Duop Reath draws the foul) | ||
| 7:32 | | Duop Reath misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 7:32 | | Trail Blazers offensive rebound | ||
| 7:32 | | Duop Reath misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 7:29 | | Rudy Gobert defensive rebound | ||
| 7:19 | | +2 | Anthony Edwards makes two point driving finger roll layup (Mike Conley assists) | 3-18 |
| 7:08 | | +2 | Duop Reath makes two point cutting finger roll layup (Anfernee Simons assists) | 5-18 |
| 6:54 | | +3 | Jaden McDaniels makes three point jump shot (Mike Conley assists) | 5-21 |
| 6:40 | | Jerami Grant misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:39 | | Mike Conley defensive rebound | ||
| 6:20 | | +2 | Anthony Edwards makes two point pullup jump shot | 5-23 |
| 6:05 | | Duop Reath misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:02 | | Rudy Gobert defensive rebound | ||
| 5:49 | | Rudy Gobert turnover (lost ball) (Jerami Grant steals) | ||
| 5:45 | | +2 | Jerami Grant makes two point running layup | 7-23 |
| 5:45 | | Jaden McDaniels defensive goaltending violation | ||
| 5:30 | | +2 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes two point driving finger roll layup (Mike Conley assists) | 7-25 |
| 5:12 | | Anfernee Simons misses three point jump shot | ||
| 5:09 | | Karl-Anthony Towns defensive rebound | ||
| 4:58 | | +2 | Rudy Gobert makes two point alley-oop dunk (Anthony Edwards assists) | 7-27 |
| 4:36 | | Jerami Grant misses two point driving reverse layup | ||
| 4:34 | | Karl-Anthony Towns defensive rebound | ||
| 4:24 | | +2 | Anthony Edwards makes two point driving layup | 7-29 |
| 4:12 | | Anfernee Simons misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 4:07 | | Duop Reath offensive rebound | ||
| 4:07 | | Duop Reath misses two point putback layup | ||
| 4:06 | | Rudy Gobert defensive rebound | ||
| 3:56 | | Jaden McDaniels turnover (traveling) | ||
| 3:36 | | Matisse Thybulle misses two point bank hook shot | ||
| 3:34 | | Jaden McDaniels defensive rebound | ||
| 3:31 | | Anfernee Simons blocks Jaden McDaniels's two point running layup | ||
| 3:30 | | Trail Blazers defensive rebound | ||
| 3:30 | | Jaden McDaniels technical foul | ||
| 3:30 | | +1 | Anfernee Simons makes technical free throw 1 of 1 | 8-29 |
| 3:06 | | +3 | Jabari Walker makes three point jump shot (Malcolm Brogdon assists) | 11-29 |
| 2:47 | | Anthony Edwards misses two point pullup bank jump shot | ||
| 2:45 | | Malcolm Brogdon defensive rebound | ||
| 2:40 | | Malcolm Brogdon misses two point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 2:38 | | Naz Reid defensive rebound | ||
| 2:23 | | Anthony Edwards misses three point jump shot | ||
| 2:19 | | Ibou Badji defensive rebound | ||
| 2:07 | | Rudy Gobert shooting foul (Malcolm Brogdon draws the foul) | ||
| 2:07 | | Timberwolves 60 second timeout | ||
| 2:07 | | +1 | Malcolm Brogdon makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 12-29 |
| 2:07 | | +1 | Malcolm Brogdon makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 13-29 |
| 1:53 | | Ibou Badji blocks Naz Reid's two point driving finger roll layup | ||
| 1:50 | | Matisse Thybulle defensive rebound | ||
| 1:48 | | Malcolm Brogdon misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 1:46 | | Rudy Gobert defensive rebound | ||
| 1:37 | | +2 | Anthony Edwards makes two point pullup jump shot | 13-31 |
| 1:15 | | Malcolm Brogdon turnover (bad pass) (Anthony Edwards steals) | ||
| 1:11 | | Anthony Edwards misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 1:09 | | Ibou Badji defensive rebound | ||
| 0:55 | | Malcolm Brogdon misses three point jump shot | ||
| 0:53 | | Timberwolves defensive rebound | ||
| 0:38 | | Ibou Badji shooting foul (Anthony Edwards draws the foul) | ||
| 0:38 | | +1 | Anthony Edwards makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 13-32 |
| 0:38 | | Anthony Edwards misses regular free throw 2 of 2 | ||
| 0:37 | | Timberwolves offensive rebound | ||
| 0:37 | | Jabari Walker personal foul (Naz Reid draws the foul) | ||
| 0:37 | | +1 | Naz Reid makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 13-33 |
| 0:37 | | +1 | Naz Reid makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 13-34 |
| 0:27 | | +2 | Scoot Henderson makes two point driving reverse layup | 15-34 |
| 0:14 | | Scoot Henderson shooting foul (Karl-Anthony Towns draws the foul) | ||
| 0:14 | | +1 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 15-35 |
| 0:14 | | +1 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 15-36 |
| 0:00 | | Scoot Henderson turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 0:00 | | End of period |
| Time | Team | Play | Score | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11:42 | | +3 | Malcolm Brogdon makes three point jump shot (Scoot Henderson assists) | 18-36 |
| 11:21 | | Kyle Anderson misses two point driving reverse layup | ||
| 11:20 | | Jabari Walker defensive rebound | ||
| 11:13 | | Scoot Henderson turnover (bad pass) (Nickeil Alexander-Walker steals) | ||
| 11:07 | | Jordan McLaughlin misses three point running jump shot | ||
| 11:04 | | Duop Reath defensive rebound | ||
| 10:54 | | Jordan McLaughlin shooting foul (Jerami Grant draws the foul) | ||
| 10:54 | | +1 | Jerami Grant makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 19-36 |
| 10:54 | | +1 | Jerami Grant makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 20-36 |
| 10:37 | | Nickeil Alexander-Walker misses three point stepback jump shot | ||
| 10:33 | | Jabari Walker defensive rebound | ||
| 10:27 | | +2 | Jabari Walker makes two point driving layup (Scoot Henderson assists) | 22-36 |
| 10:27 | | Naz Reid shooting foul (Jabari Walker draws the foul) | ||
| 10:27 | | +1 | Jabari Walker makes regular free throw 1 of 1 | 23-36 |
| 10:04 | | Jordan McLaughlin turnover (out of bounds lost ball) | ||
| 9:51 | | Kyle Anderson personal foul (Duop Reath draws the foul) | ||
| 9:44 | | +2 | Jerami Grant makes two point pullup jump shot | 25-36 |
| 9:27 | | Karl-Anthony Towns misses two point driving layup | ||
| 9:26 | | Jabari Walker defensive rebound | ||
| 9:21 | | Scoot Henderson misses two point running layup | ||
| 9:19 | | Naz Reid defensive rebound | ||
| 9:05 | | +3 | Naz Reid makes three point jump shot (Nickeil Alexander-Walker assists) | 25-39 |
| 8:45 | | Duop Reath turnover (bad pass) (Naz Reid steals) | ||
| 8:40 | | +2 | Naz Reid makes two point running layup (Kyle Anderson assists) | 25-41 |
| 8:26 | | +3 | Duop Reath makes three point jump shot (Malcolm Brogdon assists) | 28-41 |
| 8:12 | | +2 | Kyle Anderson makes two point turnaround hook shot | 28-43 |
| 7:55 | | +3 | Jerami Grant makes three point jump shot (Scoot Henderson assists) | 31-43 |
| 7:42 | | Duop Reath shooting foul (Karl-Anthony Towns draws the foul) | ||
| 7:42 | | Karl-Anthony Towns misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 7:42 | | Timberwolves offensive rebound | ||
| 7:42 | | +1 | Karl-Anthony Towns makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 31-44 |
| 7:32 | | Anfernee Simons turnover (lost ball) (Karl-Anthony Towns steals) | ||
| 7:28 | | +2 | Jordan McLaughlin makes two point running reverse layup (Mike Conley assists) | 31-46 |
| 7:28 | | Trail Blazers 60 second timeout | ||
| 7:08 | | +3 | Jerami Grant makes three point jump shot (Anfernee Simons assists) | 34-46 |
| 6:57 | | Duop Reath personal foul (Rudy Gobert draws the foul) | ||
| 6:44 | | Naz Reid misses three point jump shot | ||
| 6:41 | | Jabari Walker defensive rebound | ||
| 6:32 | | Anfernee Simons misses two point turnaround fadeaway jump shot | ||
| 6:25 | | Jabari Walker offensive rebound | ||
| 6:25 | | Jabari Walker misses two point putback layup | ||
| 6:23 | | Ibou Badji offensive rebound | ||
| 6:23 | | +2 | Ibou Badji makes two point tip dunk | 36-46 |
| 6:13 | | Ibou Badji personal foul (Rudy Gobert draws the foul) | ||
| 6:01 | | +2 | Naz Reid makes two point driving dunk (Mike Conley assists) | 36-48 |
| 5:52 | | Rudy Gobert shooting foul (Malcolm Brogdon draws the foul) | ||
| 5:52 | | Malcolm Brogdon misses regular free throw 1 of 2 | ||
| 5:52 | | Trail Blazers offensive rebound | ||
| 5:52 | | +1 | Malcolm Brogdon makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 37-48 |
| 5:39 | | Rudy Gobert misses two point turnaround bank hook shot | ||
| 5:37 | | Ibou Badji defensive rebound | ||
| 5:25 | | Jabari Walker misses two point pullup jump shot | ||
| 5:23 | | Ibou Badji offensive rebound | ||
| 5:18 | | Malcolm Brogdon misses two point floating jump shot | ||
| 5:15 | | Ibou Badji offensive rebound | ||
| 5:11 | | Rudy Gobert kicked ball violation | ||
| 5:05 | | Naz Reid personal foul (Anfernee Simons draws the foul) | ||
| 5:05 | | +1 | Anfernee Simons makes regular free throw 1 of 2 | 38-48 |
| 5:05 | | +1 | Anfernee Simons makes regular free throw 2 of 2 | 39-48 |
| 4:52 | | Mike Conley misses three point jump shot | ||
| 4:48 | | Jabari Walker defensive rebound | ||
| 4:30 | | Ibou Badji turnover (lost ball) (Jaden McDaniels steals) | ||
| 4:24 | | Naz Reid misses three point running pullup jump shot | ||
| 4:21 | | Rudy Gobert offensive rebound | ||
| 4:21 | | +2 | Rudy Gobert makes two point tip dunk | 39-50 |
| 4:03 | | Jerami Grant misses two point turnaround jump shot | ||
| 4:02 | | Rudy Gobert defensive rebound | ||
| 3:56 < |