Coach Jim Boylen looked like he was playing into the Timberwolves’ hands when he turned to a four-guard lineup with Lauri Markkanen the only big man against Karl-Anthony Towns — who was at 33 points and counting late in the fourth quarter and the Bulls leading by a point.
Somehow it worked out. Towns scored twice, giving the Timberwolves the lead both times, but the Bulls responded each time and rallied behind Zach LaVine and Markkanen for a 117-110 victory before 18,875 fans at the United Center.
Towns ended up with 40 points on 16-for-24 shooting. But LaVine (25 points), Markkanen (21) and Kris Dunn (14) combined for 22 of the Bulls’ last 24 points to pull out the victory.
“I just felt we had to score,” Boylen said of the four-guard strategy. “We could not go through a drought in those last couple of minutes. I don’t know if we were risking it.”
After Towns converted a three-point play to give the Timberwolves a 108-106 lead with 2:14 to play, Dunn scored off a feed from Tomas Satoransky and LaVine made a three-pointer to give the Bulls a 111-108 lead with 1:30 to go. After Shabazz Napier missed for the Timberwolves, Satoransky rebounded. LaVine was fouled and made two free throws to make it 113-108 with 25 seconds left.
The Timberwolves (15-29) have lost seven consecutive games.
Markkanen responds
Markkanen rebounded from a subpar performance against the Bucks on Monday with a solid all-around game. He was 4-for-10 from three-point range after going 0-for-7 against Milwaukee.
“Lauri was terrific in the fourth,” Boylen said. “I thought he set the tone with his activity, his ability to spread the floor and to make shots. He played [center] at the end. I thought it was big. He was really good.”
Reserve big men produce
While Towns dominated the middle, the Bulls at least countered with production from Luke Kornet (15 points) and Cristiano Felicio (12 points, 10 rebounds), who combined for 27 points. Boylen wasn’t expecting that.
“No, [but] I’m thankful for it,” he said. “I hoped to [get that]. We got that in Detroit with Daniel [Gafford] and Kornet. The center position in our system is very important.”
