Edwards, Towns help Wolves edge Nets 107-102, end skid at three

NEW YORK (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored 23points, Karl-Anthony Towns had 22 points, 14 rebounds and fiveassists, and the Minnesota Timberwolves held off the Brooklyn Nets107-102 on Tuesday night.

Rudy Gobert had 12 points and 12 rebounds for Minnesota, whichsnapped a three-game losing streak. Mike Conley scored 18 points,nine in the fourth quarter.

Spencer Dinwiddie had 30 points and six assists, Mikal Bridgesscored 24 points and Dorian Finney-Smith had 14 points and 10rebounds for the Nets, who had their three-game win streak snapped.Their lead over Miami for the No. 6 seed in the Eastern Conferencewas cut to one game after the Heat’s 118-105 victory inDetroit.

Similar to their first meeting, a 124-123 Nets win, the teamstraded momentum in the game, which featured 24 lead changes andeight ties. But Minnesota shot 53% in the fourth quarter, and Townsgave the Timberwolves the lead for good when he made a pair of freethrows with a minute remaining.

Dinwiddie had a chance to tie the game with a 3-pointer, but ithit the back rim.

Minnesota’s length wreaked havoc on Brooklyn’s offense early,and the Nets shot just 29% in the first quarter. Towns had sixpoints, eight rebounds and four assists in the period, and theWolves led 31-24 after one.

The Nets found their shooting touch in the second quarter,especially from the outside, where they made 5 of 8 from 3-pointrange. Finney-Smith hit a pair of 3-pointers in Brooklyn’s 11-0run, and the Nets outscored Minnesota 30-20 in the second, taking athree-point halftime lead.

Brooklyn outscored Minnesota 26-10 over a span of 9:46 betweenthe second and third quarters. The Nets scored the first eightpoints of the third, building their largest lead, 62-51.

TIP-INS

Timberwolves: Gobert’s double-double was his 34th of the season.…. Towns (right calf strain) was listed as questionable but played.Guards Jaylen Nowell (left knee tendinopathy) and Austin Rivers(illness) and forward Naz Reid (left scaphoid fracture) wereinactive.

Nets: Bridges was named Eastern Conference player of the weekMonday after averaging 33 points and 5.7 rebounds over three Netswins. He entered play averaging 27.6 points, 4.7 rebounds and 2.7assists in 35.2 minutes per game in 23 games since the Netsacquired him from Phoenix on Feb. 9. … Brooklyn entered play withthe NBA’s lowest opposing free-throw percentage in home games(74.4%). Minnesota went 17 for 22 from the free throw line.

UP NEXT

Timberwolves: At San Antonio on Saturday.

Nets: At Detroit on Wednesday.