Julius Randle stuffed the stat sheet and Minnesota had just enough down the stretch.
Randle finished with 28 points, 11 rebounds and eight assists as the Timberwolves held off the Cleveland Cavaliers for a 131-122 victory Thursday night, extending their winning streak to four games.
Anthony Edwards added 25 points, nine assists and seven rebounds while reaching a milestone. The 24-year-old became the third-youngest player in NBA history to score 10,000 career points, joining LeBron James and Kevin Durant. Edwards reached the mark with a 13-foot fadeaway midway through the fourth quarter, becoming just the seventh player to do so before turning 25.
Minnesota broke the game open in the third quarter, outscoring Cleveland 43-22 to build a 20-point lead. Randle led the surge with 13 points in the period. Jaden McDaniels was highly efficient with 26 points on 11-of-14 shooting, and Donte DiVincenzo knocked down six 3-pointers to finish with 22 points as the Timberwolves withstood a late Cavaliers rally.
The Timberwolves (25-13) improved to 15-5 since Thanksgiving, the best mark in the NBA over that span. They set season highs in shooting, going 51 of 89 from the field (57%) and 20 of 38 from beyond the arc (53%), and opened the night with a 17-5 run.
Cleveland made things interesting late behind Sam Merrill, who scored 11 of his 22 points in the fourth quarter and hit a 3-pointer with 2:56 remaining to cut the deficit to four. Donovan Mitchell led the Cavaliers (21-18) with 30 points and eight assists. Cleveland played without forward Dean Wade, who was sidelined with a bruised left knee.
Before tipoff, the Timberwolves held a moment of silence for Renee Good, the 37-year-old woman fatally shot Wednesday while sitting in her car.
The two teams will conclude their season series Saturday afternoon in Cleveland.
