The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Atlanta Hawks 109-106 on Friday night up in the land of a ‘1000 lakes.’ Atlanta is locked into the 10th seed, so head coach Quin Snyder sat his main guys to close out the fourth quarter. The Timberwolves are fighting for the first seed in the Western Conference, so their starters closed out the contest against the Hawks’ reserves.
Early on, De’Andre Hunter picked up two quick fouls but stayed in the game. Rudy Gobert was dominant early, scoring six straight points to tie the game at 11 a piece. The Hawks went on a 6-0 run early, taking full advantage of three Wolves turnovers. Gobert threw down four first-quarter dunks and gave Minnesota its first lead at 19-18. Atlanta had trouble defending on the interior without fouling throughout the night. Hunter was not the only Hawks player in foul trouble, as Mouhamed Gueye collected fouls on back-to-back questionable calls on Naz Reid. Anthony Edwards fouled three times in the opening frame, which ended in a 27-25 Hawks lead. Atlanta had the advantage, despite shooting 0-6 from deep.
The whistle continued to go Minnesota’s way in the second quarter, as the Hawks picked up four team fouls in the first three minutes. The Wolves cashed in their free throws and put together a 7-0 run to take a 37-30 lead. Bogdan Bogdanović hit the Hawks’ first three with three minutes left in the frame, but Jaden McDaniels countered with his own triple, keeping Minnesota’s lead safe. Edwards could not find a rhythm offensively and picked up his fourth foul before halftime. Gobert collected 11 points and 10 boards, while Reid scored, giving the Wolves a 56-47 lead after 24 minutes. Minnesota’s bench outscored Atlanta’s reserves 25-7 in the first half.
The Hawks made their biggest push in the third frame. Bogdanović and Hunter hit back-to-back early threes to cut the deficit to 59-53. However, the Wolves got back their momentum when Gobert’s block led to an open Mike Conley three on a fastbreak. Minnesota extended its lead to 20, but Atlanta was prepared. Trae Young, Bogdanović and Clint Capela spearheaded a massive 14-0 Hawks run, cutting the Wolves’ lead to 76-70. Young knocked a logo three before the frame ended, and Capela cashed in a free throw to tie the game at 80 apiece heading into the fourth quarter.
Young wowed the fans with a one-footed runner from beyond the arc to give Atlanta their first lead since early in the game to begin the frame. Near the nine-minute mark, Snyder replaced the starters, putting in Kobe Bufkin and Vít Krejčí for the first time. Krejčí was ready for his opportunity, scoring five straight to give the Hawks a 98-96 advantage. Minnesota countered with a 7-0 run from Karl-Anthony Towns and Edwards to take a three-point lead with 49 seconds left. With the Wolves up three points, Bufkin stole the ball from Edwards, leading to a Bruno Fernando slam. Edwards cashed in two free throws, as the Hawks were forced to foul. Off an in-bounds play, Krejčí got a clean look from deep, but it did not fall, sealing the Wolves victory.
Young led his squad with 19 points and seven assists, as his minutes restriction pushed up to 27. Dejounte Murray struggled, shooting 5-14 for 12 points, while Capela put up a 13-point, 11-rebound double-double. Bogdanović scored 17, and Hunter added 15 (5-14 FG). Fernando gave the Hawks a boost off the bench with 14 points and five boards in 22 minutes.
Gobert collected a monster 25-point, 19-rebound double-double, and Reid totaled 19 points on 5-10 shooting. Edwards shot 4-12 from the field for 14 points, while Conley totaled 13 points and 10 assists. In his return to action, Towns scored 11 and dished out eight dimes.
In the final game of the regular season, Atlanta will face the Indiana Pacers on Sunday at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. Hawks fans can expect lower minutes for the starting group based on Snyder’s rotation pattern in the last two contests.
