DALLAS – Tuesday was a game of attrition for both the Timberwolves and Mavericks.
The Wolves entered the night without five players, who were all in COVID protocols. That included the dynamic Anthony Edwards and two of their best defenders in Jarred Vanderbilt and Patrick Beverley. Dallas entered without its two best players in Luka Doncic and Kristaps Porzingis, both out with physical injuries, along with a host of others out in COVID protocols.
Without Vanderbilt and Beverley the biggest question for the Wolves was how well they would defend, even against a shorthanded Mavericks team.
The Wolves weren't quite good enough on either end in a 114-102 loss in Dallas. They erased a 17-point third-quarter deficit to take a two-point lead early in the fourth quarter, but the Mavericks, behind 28 from Jalen Brunson, had enough firepower to put them away late.
Karl-Anthony Towns did what he had to do with the Wolves down three starters and scored 26 points, but D'Angelo Russell struggled on a night the Wolves needed his shot-making as he scored 14 on 4 of 18 shooting, 1 of 11 from three-point range.
After the Wolves took a 94-92 lead with 7 minutes, 50 seconds to play, the Mavericks went on a 12-1 run over the next four minutes. The Wolves couldn't string together enough stops down the stretch to get closer than six.
To start the game, coach Chris Finch went with Towns, Russell, Jaden McDaniels, Malik Beasley and Leandro Bolmaro.
It didn't long for the lineups to get funky. Toward the end of the first quarter, Finch had Jake Layman, Jaylen Nowell and Jordan McLaughlin all on the floor together. As recently as a few weeks ago that combination sharing the floor would've meant the Wolves were running out the clock on a blowout loss or win. On Tuesday, that trio had to help the Wolves get through significant minutes.
The starting unit played even with Dallas through most of the first quarter. Rebounding lagged with Vanderbilt out and the Mavericks had five offensive rebounds in the first quarter while Russell started 0-for-4 for the Wolves.
Neither team led by more than four in the first as Towns played like he knew he needed to carry the Wolves early. He had 12 in the first 12 minutes. Brunson continued his streak of playing well against the Wolves with nine in the first as the Wolves led 35-34 after one.
The Mavericks made their first significant run of the night midway through the second quarter as the Wolves struggled offensively with Russell on the bench and Bolmaro taking over point guard duties.
After a Towns three gave the Wolves a 42-41 lead, Dallas rattled off nine straight points as Finch used a timeout to try and stem the run. But the Wolves had trouble scoring. Beasley knocked down a few threes, but the Mavericks doubled Towns and dared others to make plays. Most of the time they couldn't. Dallas carried a 61-50 lead into halftime. Towns and Beasley were a combined 11 of 15 in the first half. The rest of the team was 7 of 23.
The Wolves also had 10 turnovers in the first half.
Dallas continued its onslaught early in the third and pushed the lead to 79-62 as Finch searched for any combination that might work. He turned to little-used Nathan Knight, who took the floor with McLaughlin, McDaniels, Bealsey and Towns. That unit finally got come stops to help the Wolves score 13 straight points to make it a 79-75 game.
Dallas then reeled off nine straight and took an 88-78 lead into the fourth before the Wolves answered with a 9-0 run to open the fourth. Russell gave them their first lead, 92-90, since the second quarter with his first three of the night. But their lead would be short-lived.
