DALLAS _ Ask any NBA player and they will tell you theirs is a game of runs.
On Friday night in Dallas, the Wolves trailed a Mavericks team that came into American Airlines Center with a 2-13 record by as many as 14 points, and still the Wolves headed off with a careening 111-87 victory.
They improved to 10-5 and won their third consecutive game because of two massive second-half runs.
A 27-6 third-quarter run shifted the momentum the Wolves' way, and then a 21-4 run in the fourth quarter put away a Mavericks team that has only beaten Memphis and Washington this season.
That took the Wolves from 14 points behind in the third quarter's opening seconds into a lead that grew to as much as 24 points.
Wolves star Jimmy Butler broke out of a four-game shooting slump with a 21-point night on 8-for-19 shooting that included an important four-point play.
Butler and point guard Jeff Teague each made three 3s, all but two of them in a second half when the Wolves outscored Dallas 31-17 in the third quarter and 68-32 after halftime.
The Wolves trailed 57-43 in the third quarter's opening seconds, then went on that run that included 3-point shots by Karl-Anthony Towns (15 points, 11 rebounds), Andrew Wiggins (19 points) and Teague, as well as a rare four-point play by Butler.
Meanwhile, the Mavericks went sloppy and cold, making just 6 of 17 shots from the field in the third quarter while the Wolves made 12 of 20 third-quarter shots.
Mavs forward Harrison Barnes made 1 of 4 shots from the field in the third quarter after he had gone 5 for 10 and scored 15 points in the first half. He finished with 18 points and six rebounds.
