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Minnesota Timberwolves hang on to defeat Boston Celtics

By Dan Myers, The Sports Xchange

MINNEAPOLIS -- At times, it wasn't pretty. But for the Minnesota Timberwolves, it was enough ... barely.

The young Timberwolves built double-digit leads in all four quarters, then hung on late for a 124-122 win over the Boston Celtics at Target Center on Monday.

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Rookie center Karl-Anthony Towns led all players with 28 points and 13 rebounds, helping Minnesota snap a brief two-game losing streak.

Boston (33-25) lost for the fourth time in its past 15 games but finished a three-game road trip against Northwest Division foes 1-2.

The Timberwolves (18-39) led by as many as 10 with less than two minutes to play, but they missed four of their final six free throws to keep the Celtics in it. Boston guard Marcus Smart had a 3-point shot from 30 feet miss short off the rim at the final horn.

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"It should have never gotten to that point," a disappointed Towns said afterward. "We got sloppy as a team. It's great that we got the 'W' but for me personally, I'm just not happy with the way we executed at the end."

Boston outscored Minnesota 38-31 in the final quarter to make a game of it.

"Their guys played to the end and played fast," said Wolves interim coach Sam Mitchell. "We made some mistakes defensively then missed some free throws. But it was a good win. It worked out for us tonight."

Towns was dominant, especially early, scoring 15 points in the first quarter as Minnesota led by 16 at one point. Boston closed the frame on an 8-0 run but the Wolves led 31-23 after one.

The Celtics continued their push to open the second. A layup by Smart gave Boston its first lead at 32-31 and punctuated a 17-0 run.

Another lay-in by forward Jonas Jerebko just over a minute later gave Boston its largest lead of the night at 37-34 before the Wolves went on a 14-2 spurt to take an 11-point lead.

"Size was a huge factor," Celtics coach Brad Stevens said. "(But) I thought there were some things that we can control that we can do better."

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Towns had 20 first-half points and channeled Minnesota-native and former Celtics legend Kevin McHale on one pretty up-and-under finish at the rim, helping the Wolves to a 59-53 advantage at the break.

"He got us off to such a great start scoring the basketball," Mitchell said. "Then other guys started chipping in."

One of those guys was Shabazz Muhammad, who scored 13 points in 20 minutes off the bench. Point guard Ricky Rubio chipped in with 15 points, eight rebounds and eight assists and backup point Tyus Jones added a season-high nine points in 14 minutes to keep Minnesota afloat with Rubio resting on the bench.

Wolves forward Gorgui Dieng, starting in place of an injured Kevin Garnett, had 17 points and 12 rebounds. All five starters for Minnesota finished in double figures.

"We had no answer for them (inside)," Stevens said. "Towns had his way with us the whole night. Their other guys did too, but he stood out."

Boston got within two points at 66-64 on a 3-pointer by guard Avery Bradley less than four minutes into the third quarter to get to within 66-64 before Minnesota went on a 15-4 run.

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Boston threatened one final time in the third, scoring six quick points to narrow its deficit to four points. But Dieng pushed the Wolves' lead to nine points headed to the fourth on a three at the buzzer that banked in. A quick video review confirmed the call on the floor.

The Celtics were led by forward Jae Crawford's 27 points and nine rebounds. All-Star guard Isaiah Thomas had 18 points and dished out nine assists. Bradley had 22 points, and Smart added 17 off the bench.

Thomas scored six points in the final 90 seconds and Bradley drilled a late 3-pointer to get within one at 123-122. Wolves guard Zach LaVine, who finished with 16 points, made 1 of 2 at the line before Smart's open look at the horn missed.

"I think they outworked us tonight," Crawford said. "When they're getting 50-50 balls ... I don't think it's a matter of size, I think they just outworked us."

Minnesota owned a 51-38 edge on the glass and finished shooting 51.8 percent from the floor compared to 48.5 percent by Boston.

NOTES: Celtics G Marcus Smart was active despite a jammed right thumb that he initially hurt Friday against the Utah Jazz. Smart had 10 points and four steals off the bench in a win over the Denver Nuggets on Sunday. ... Timberwolves F Nemanja Bjelica had an MRI performed on his sore right foot on Monday, revealing a strain. Bjelica is expected to travel with the Wolves on their upcoming three-game road trip but will not play. He is considered week-to-week. ... Boston will return home to open a five-game homestand Thursday against the Milwaukee Bucks at TD Garden. ... Minnesota will begin its three-game trip Wednesday against the Toronto Raptors at Air Canada Centre.

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