MEMPHIS, Tenn. (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored 24 points, Karl-Anthony Towns and Mike Conley each had 18 and the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Memphis Grizzlies 119-97 on Sunday.
Rudy Gobert added 13 points to help the Timberwolves win for the fourth time in the last five games. Conley added a game-high 10 assists and finished 6 of 9 from 3-point range.
Jaren Jackson Jr. led Memphis with 18 points, while Santi Aldama finished with 14. Desmond Bane scored 13 points, but was 5 of 16 from the field as Memphis lost its fourth straight, falling to 0-8 home.
The Timberwolves sit atop the Western Conference standings, while Memphis struggled to stay out of the conference cellar, trying to maintain its competitiveness in the face of injuries and Ja Morant’s 25-game suspension.
The Timberwolves dominated the first half as Minnesota still shot 60 percent from the field overall and 6 of 10 from beyond the arc midway through the second quarter. With Memphis shooting less than 40 percent, including 2 of 19 from 3-point range, the Timberwolves’ lead grew to 20 before making it 60-43 at the break.
Minnesota continued to maintain the advantage in the third quarter, eventually extending it to 90-66 after three quarters. And that came with Towns and Gobert playing limited minutes in the period with foul trouble.
Memphis cut it to 102-90 midway through the third, but the Timberwolves scored eight straight points, including 3-pointers from Conley and Nickeil Alexander-Walker to end any hopes of a Memphis comeback.
