National Basketball Association
Minnesota 132, Brooklyn 118
When: 8:00 PM ET, Saturday, March 5, 2016
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Officials: #10 Ron Garretson, #77 Karl Lane, #29 Mark Lindsay
Attendance: 15987

MINNEAPOLIS -- For the Minnesota Timberwolves, it was just one of those nights. And that's a good thing, as Minnesota enjoyed the comforts of home and the Brooklyn Nets looked like a road-weary bunch.

Rookie star Karl-Anthony Towns added to his campaign as the NBA's top newcomer, scoring 28 points in Minnesota's 132-118 win on Saturday night.

The Timberwolves never trailed and got 26 points from Andrew Wiggins, who was one of five Minnesota players scoring in double figures.

As a team, Minnesota (20-43) shot 68.4 percent from the field, hitting 52 of 76 shots, which set a franchise record.

"It felt like every time we looked up and our guys had the ball, it was going in. I felt like our guys were really focused," Wolves interim coach Sam Mitchell said.

His team had suffered an ugly loss in Milwaukee on Friday, and Mitchell was happy to reset.

"Some of the things we emphasized and talked about, I thought our guys did a better job, we just need to start doing them more consistently."

Brooklyn, which has lost three of its last four while enduring a three-week road trip, got 23 points from Markel Brown and a career-high 19 points from Sean Kilpatrick.

But the Nets fell behind early and could not close the gap. Thomas Robinson was the game's leading rebounder with 17. He admitted that the travel is getting to the Nets.

"It's hard in these last games because you know you're about to get back home and you've got to keep that thought out of your head because you've still got a game to play," Robinson said. "It's tough to fight, but as a professional you've got to deal with it."

The Nets (18-45) trailed 97-79 after three quarters, then went on a 19-7 run with the Timberwolves' starters resting, cutting the deficit to eight. But Minnesota guard Ricky Rubio stopped Brooklyn's momentum, hitting a 3-pointer and two free throws to boost the lead back to double digits.

Minnesota, which had lost its last three in a row, came out firing, putting up 37 first-quarter points while shooting nearly 74 percent from the field and doing an impressive job sharing the ball.

"We all came out and we played as a team," Wiggins said. "We moved the ball, we helped each other defensively, we made shots. We all made it easier on each other, moving the ball three, four times, getting it side to side and the next thing you know we'd have a wide open layup."

The Timberwolves' 14 assists in the first quarter were their most in a quarter since April 2003.

Minnesota went on a 15-2 run in the second quarter and led by as many as 20 at one point before Brooklyn scored the final five points before halftime.

The Timberwolves led 68-51 at the break, with Wiggins' 16 points pacing all scorers.

Minnesota's Zach LaVine put on a show late in the half as well, hitting two 3--pointers and a fast-break dunk to finish with 15 points in the half.

"Not a lot of resistance tonight," said Nets interim head coach Tony Brown. "They've got some pretty skilled players out there. Obviously they've got a quality point guard in Rubio, finds people when they're open, and Towns and Wiggins are some of the better shot makers in our league. So hey, they played great, scored 132 points."

Willie Reed led the Nets with 10 points in the first half. Reed ended up with career highs in assists, blocks, rebounds and points in the game.

NOTES: The Timberwolves honored the high school basketball teams from Waseca, Minn., and Marshall, Minn., for their recent memorable game that was featured on several national highlight shows. On Thursday, the schools played a four-overtime thriller featuring three buzzer-beaters. Waseca prevailed 103-100 on a last-second shot to earn a trip to the Minnesota state tournament. ... Nets coach Tony Brown announced before the game C Brook Lopez and F Thaddeus Young would sit out Saturday's game for rest. ... C Willie Reed made his first start for Lopez and F Thomas Robinson started in place of Young. ... In the midst of their season-long nine-game road trip, the Nets have two more games away from home next week. They will visit Toronto on Tuesday and Philadelphia on Friday before their next game in Brooklyn. Minnesota heads out on the road next, facing the Hornets in Charlotte on Monday.
Top Game Performances
 
Brooklyn   Minnesota
Markel Brown 23 Scoring Karl-Anthony Towns 28
Shane Larkin 5 Assists Ricky Rubio 10
Thomas Robinson 17 Rebounds Ricky Rubio 7
Markel Brown 4 Free Throws Made Shabazz Muhammad 7
Thomas Robinson 4 Steals Zach LaVine 2
Willie Reed 4 Blocks Gorgui Dieng 3
Team Stats Summary
 
Team Points FG% 3PM-3PA FTM-FTA Assists Rebounds Blocks Steals Turnovers
Brooklyn 118 48.9 9-26 19-26 19 37 4 7 16
Minnesota 132 68.4 10-18 18-22 36 30 8 8 12
Upcoming Games
  • Minnesota will play their next game on the road against Charlotte. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .350 after a win and .302 after a loss.
  • Brooklyn will play their next game on the road against Toronto. The Nets have a W/L % of .167 after a win and .333 after a loss.