As the Western Conference playoff race continues to heat up, every team trying to reach the postseason seemingly refuses to lose a game.
On Friday night, the Minnesota Timberwolves continued the trend while sitting in the heart of that playoff race.
In what turned out to be a back-and-forth contest, Minnesota came away with a 108-104 win over the New York Knicks at Madison Square Garden.
With the win, the Wolves improved to 42-31 on the year, clinching their first winning season since they last did it in 2004-05.
Minnesota was rolling early in the game Friday night, jumping out to a quick lead in the opening quarter while looking to be on pace to not letting up.
Up by as much as 16 points in the first half, the Wolves ended up allowing New York to go on a bit of a run to end the half and give the Knicks some life heading into the break trailing 57-48.
In the third quarter, New York mirrored what Minnesota did to start the game by getting off to a strong start in the second half. The Knicks went on an 18-2 run to lead by as much as nine midway through the third.
The Wolves ended up going on one final run of their own late in the third quarter to regain an 84-82 lead going into the final quarter. That ended up being enough for Minnesota, which didn’t look back and ultimately came away with the win.
With the Wolves up by a handful late, Nemanja Bjelica made a key diving save that sealed the deal for the Wolves. Bjelica continued his stretch of playing well in the starting lineup while Jimmy Butler is recovering from a knee injury, ending with 17 points and six rebounds.
Free throws were a big factor in Minnesota coming away with the win in the end, finishing 28-of-32 from the line while holding New York to just 17 free throw attempts.
Along with the win, it was a night filled with milestones for the Wolves. Karl-Anthony Towns, who finished with a team-best 24 points, 13 rebounds and three assists, tallied his NBA-leading 60th double-double of the season.
Jamal Crawford, who had 13 points off the bench for Minnesota, moved up to fifth on the NBA’s all-time list in three-point field goals and passed Isiah Thomas for 59th on the league’s all-time scoring list.
Andrew Wiggins also finished with a double-double of 17 points and a career-high 11 rebounds in the win.
With the absence of Butler and in the middle of a very tight playoff race, every win down the stretch will be an important one for the Wolves. Especially with no other Western Conference team appearing to be slowing down anytime soon.
Minnesota is back in action on Saturday night, taking on the Philadelphia 76ers at 5 p.m. in Philadelphia.
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