DALLAS (AP) — Julius Randle scored 31 points, Naz Reid scored 23 and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the short-handed Dallas Mavericks 118-105 on Wednesday night.
The Mavericks lost No. 1 overall pick Cooper Flagg, who sat out the first night of a back-to-back while dealing with a left ankle injury. Flagg played in the first three games after missing two games with a sprained ankle.
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Dallas’ Klay Thompson is out with left knee soreness and 10-time All-Star Anthony Davis is out with a hand injury. Star guard Kyrie Irving has been out all season after tearing his ACL last March.
Anthony Edwards scored 20 points for the Timberwolves, who have won consecutive games after suffering their longest losing streak of five games this season.
P.J. Washington Jr. scored all 21 of the Mavericks’ points in the second half. Naji Marshall scored 18 points and Brandon Williams scored 17 points.
Randle made 12 of 21 shots and made all 7 free throws. He has scored at least 21 points in 11 of the last 12 games against his hometown team.
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Dallas’ Max Christie scored nine points on 1-for-8 shooting, extending his fourth straight game of 20 points. He made 7 of 8 free throws, but his teammates shot 19 of 31 from the line, and Dallas shot 67 percent (26 points on 39 field goals).
The Mavericks only trailed for 26 seconds. At the end of the fourth quarter, Reid hit a three-pointer and launched a 12-3 run, narrowing the gap to 8 points.
In the fourth quarter, Dallas trailed by 10 points when Reed hit a jumper and another 3-pointer to lead 106-91. Reed had 8 rebounds and 3 steals.
Next
The two teams complete back-to-back games at home on Thursday. Timberwolves vs. Oklahoma City. Dallas has Charlotte.
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AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/nba