The Minnesota Timberwolves were defeated by the Chicago Bulls 129-123 in overtime, despite having a 23-point lead in the second quarter. The Timberwolves had an amazing first half of play, but they were unable to maintain a double-digit lead and ultimately lost unexpectedly on the road.
Minnesota led the Bulls 69-47 at the half and looked to be in perfect control. However, the Bulls outscored Minnesota 36-23 in the third quarter to pull within striking distance. Chicago managed to gain a lead in the last minutes of regulation by continuing to capitalize on the Timberwolves’ poor performance in the fourth quarter.
After Minnesota’s Karl-Anthony Towns made a game-tying 3-pointer with just over a minute remaining, the Bulls led 115–112 and forced overtime. The Timberwolves attempted to get back on track in the extra session, but Chicago pulled away in the closing seconds to complete the second-half comeback.
After the break, DeMar DeRozan and Coby White, who combined for a team-high 33 points, proved too much for Chris Finch’s team to contain. White was on fire from beyond the arc, scoring 30 points in the second half alone. It took Chicago some time to establish a rhythm from 3-point range, but it was still better than nothing in the end.
Even though Minnesota’s standout guard Anthony Edwards scored a game-high 38 points and pulled down 12 rebounds, his late-game struggles prevented him from winning. Towns made 7 of 16 shots from 3-point range to finish with 33 points and 5 rebounds. Rudy Gobert, the center, finished with 12 points and 16 rebounds in the defeat.
Minnesota had a lackluster second half and paid a heavy price for it as they missed an opportunity to take sole ownership of first place in the Western Conference rankings. With the defeat, the Timberwolves fell to 35-16. On Thursday night, they will try to rebound against the Milwaukee Bucks.