Field Level Media
Jan 28, 2021
Rookie James Wiseman led a balanced attack with a season-best 25 points Wednesday night, pacing the Golden State Warriors to a second win over the Minnesota Timberwolves in three days, 123-111 in San Francisco.
Kelly Oubre Jr. (20), Andrew Wiggins (19), Damion Lee (17) and Stephen Curry (16) made it five Warriors with 16 or more points as Golden State completed a two-game sweep that began with a 130-108 home romp on Monday night.
No. 1 pick in the 2020 draft, Minnesota's Anthony Edwards, squaring off with No. 2 selection Wiseman for the second time in their NBA careers, had 25 points, one off his season best.
The Timberwolves lost for the sixth time in their last seven games.
Using balanced scoring, Golden State trailed only briefly in the second period, grabbed a seven-point advantage by halftime and eased away in the second half en route to its fifth two-game winning streak of the season. The Warriors have yet to win three in a row.
After Edwards had outscored Wiseman 15-13 on Monday in their initial head-to-head, they dueled on near-even terms again in the rematch.
Wiseman surpassed his previous high point total of 20, set last week against the San Antonio Spurs. He matched his season best with three 3-pointers (on three tries) and finished the night 9-for-14 overall. He also found time with six rebounds and two blocks.
Edwards, who had a total of just 23 3-pointers in his first 16 games, bombed in a season-best five on eight attempts to account for a majority of his points. He also registered four rebounds, three steals and two assists.
Golden State outshot Minnesota 52.9 percent to 42.5 percent, led by Oubre's 7-for-9 success. Wiggins made eight of his 13 shots.
The Warriors' Kevon Looney was the game's leading rebounder with 10. Curry had a game-high eight assists and added six rebounds one game after crushing the Timberwolves with 36 points.
Malik Beasley matched Edwards' 25 points while Naz Reid added 19 points and Jaylen Nowell 12 for the Timberwolves, who were once again without Karl-Anthony Towns (health and safety protocols) and D'Angelo Russell (quad).
The rookies were the star attractions in a first half that saw Curry go scoreless for the first 23-plus minutes. His only two points in the half came on a layup with nine seconds remaining before the break.
Wiseman shot 3-for-3 from 3-point range and totaled 14 points in the half, which ended with Golden State up 58-51.
Edwards was one better for the Timberwolves, going for 15 first-half points, mostly as a result of 3-for-4 shooting from beyond the arc.
--Field Level Media