Karl-Anthony Towns hit a go-ahead 3-pointer with 11 seconds to play after Kyle Anderson stole a pass by Draymond Green, and the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves held off the Golden State Warriors 99-96 on Sunday night to keep things interesting in the wild Western Conference playoff standings.
Jordan Poole gave Golden State the lead on a 3-pointer with 1:28 left, moments after Towns had connected from deep. Poole, who had a game-high 27 points, then secured a rebound on the other end.
The Warriors had a chance with 9.9 seconds left but Stephen Curry couldn’t corral Poole’s errant pass, then Curry missed a contested 3 from the baseline just before the final buzzer.
Towns had 14 points and five rebounds in his second outing following a 52-game absence with a strained right calf.
hornets 110, mavericks 104 >> Charlotte overcame a 40-point outing from Luka Doncic to defeat visiting Dallas; it was the Hornets’ second win over the Mavericks in three days and another costly blow to Dallas’ playoff hopes. Gordon Hayward scored 22 points for the Hornets, who have been eliminated from playoff contention. The Mavericks (36-39) are a game behind Oklahoma City and the Lakers in the Western Conference.
celtics 137, spurs 93 >> Jaylen Brown scored 41 points and grabbed 13 rebounds to lead host Boston. The Celtics were without star forward and leading scorer Jayson Tatum (left hip contusion). Boston still moved to 1 1/2 games behind Milwaukee for the Eastern Conference’s best record. Zach Collins scored 21 points with seven rebounds for San Antonio.
magic 119, nets 106 >> Cole Anthony had 21 points to lead eight Orlando scorers in double figures, and the Magic overcame Mikal Bridges’ 44 points for a win over visiting Brooklyn. Franz Wagner added 19 points and 10 rebounds and Wendell Carter had 18 points and six rebounds to help the Magic win their third straight.
grizzlies 123, hawks 119 >> Ja Morant scored 27 points in his return to the Memphis starting lineup and the Grizzlies held off host Atlanta for their sixth consecutive win. Desmond Bane added 25 points for Memphis. Memphis is second in the Western Conference. Trae Young led Atlanta with 28 points.
raptors 114, wizards 104 >> O.G. Anunoby scored 29 points and Fred VanVleet had 28 for host Toronto. Pascal Siakam had 19 points and 11 rebounds for the Raptors. Kristaps Porzingis scored 26 points and Corey Kispert had 19 for Washington, which has lost four straight road games.
cavaliers 108, rockets 91 >> Jarrett Allen scored 24 points and had 14 rebounds, Donovan Mitchell added 22 points and host Cleveland clinched a playoff spot for the first time since 2018. Jalen Green scored 30 to pace Houston, which has lost five straight.
thunder 118, trail blazers 112 >> Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 31 points for visiting Oklahoma City. Shaedon Sharpe led Portland with a career-high 29 points and Nassir Little scored a season-high 28 off the bench.