Timberwolves beat Nuggets 130-115; Edwards, McDaniels named Rising Stars
(FOX 9) - The Minnesota Timberwolves have found themselves hot lately despite the cold temperatures of their home city, beating the Denver Nuggets Tuesday night 130-115.
Karl-Anthony Towns led the way with 24 points and 10 rebounds. Taurean Prince was the next leading scorer – a player who has been a pleasant surprise to many lately – with 23 points. Forward Jarred Vanderbilt scored 18 points and added nine rebounds.
Denver Nuggets all-star center and recent Towns rival Nikola Jokic had seven triple-doubles in the month of January, and nearly had his first of February with 21 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists.
An equally hot Nuggets team had won five straight and 12 of its last 15 games heading into the contest, but the Timberwolves were clicking on all cylinders in the first half as both an efficient defense and bench scoring saw the team leap ahead to an early 69-51 lead at the break.
Propelled by a bench that scored a season-high 68 points in the end, the lead grew to as much as 28 points in the second half and didn’t dissipate much in the latter quarters as the Timberwolves ended the game with the win.
The Nuggets had won seven in a row at Target Center, and 25 of their last 32 throughout the Towns era. But if Tuesday night was a glimpse into the potential of the Timberwolves’ current roster, those numbers could begin to skew in the Timberwolves future going forward.
Minnesota now has a record of 26-25 on the season, and will travel to Detroit to play the Pistons on Thursday.
Anthony Edwards, Jaden McDaniels to represent Timberwolves at 2022 Clorox Rising Stars
The NBA announced that both Anthony Edwards and forward Jaden McDaniels have been named to the 2022 Clorox Rising Stars roster, as part of NBA All-Star Weekend.
This is the second straight year Edwards has been named to the Rising Stars game after the 2021 Rising Stars game was not played due to the 2021 NBA All-Star format. It's the first selection for McDaniels. It’s only the third time in Timberwolves history that multiple players have been selected to the Rising Stars roster at the same time.
The 2022 Clorox Rising Stars tournament will be played on Friday, Feb. 18 as part of 2022 NBA All-Star week.