Timberwolves beat Cavaliers 131-122 behind Randle's 28 points, set season highs for shooting percentages
Julius Randle had 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists to help the Minnesota Timberwolves hang on to beat the Cleveland Cavaliers 131-122 on Thursday night for their fourth consecutive victory.
Anthony Edwards added 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds while becoming the third-youngest player in NBA history to reach 10,000 career points, following LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Edwards, who is 24 years and 156 days old, hit the five-digit mark with a 13-foot fadeaway jumper midway through the fourth quarter. Only seven players ever have hit the five-digit mark before 25.
Randle scored 13 points in the third quarter as the Timberwolves built a 20-point lead while outscoring the Cavaliers 43-22 to match the team's season high for points in any period. Jaden McDaniels had 26 points on 11-for-14 shooting, and Donte DiVincenzo went 6 for 10 from 3-point range to finish with 22 points as Minnesota fended off a late Cavaliers surge.
The Timberwolves (25-13) improved to 15-5 since Thanksgiving Day, the best record in the NBA over that span. They started the game on a 17-5 run and finished with season highs in field goal shooting (51 for 89, 57%) and 3-point shooting (20 for 38, 53%) percentages.
Sam Merrill had 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter, hitting a 3-pointer with 2:56 left for Cleveland that cut the deficit to four. Donovan Mitchell had 30 points and eight assists for the Cavaliers (21-18), who played without forward Dean Wade after he left their previous game with a bruised left knee.
The Timberwolves held a pregame moment of silence for Renee Good, the 37-year-old woman who was fatally shot in her car on Wednesday by a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement officer.
"As we all know, our community has suffered yet another unspeakable tragedy," Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said before his team faced the Cleveland Cavaliers. "We want to just convey our condolences and heartfelt wishes and prayers and thoughts to the families and loved ones and all of those that are greatly affected by what happened."
The Cavaliers and Timberwolves finish their two-game season series with the rematch in Cleveland on Saturday afternoon.