The Minnesota Timberwolves were able to squeak out an 81-79 victory over Toronto Raptors on Saturday, advancing to the semifinals of the Las Vegas Summer League tournament.
Toronto held advantages in most significant statistical categories during the game, but the Timberwolves were able to overcome those discrepancies to mount a comeback victory. Minnesota by as many as 13 points in the fourth quarter, and used a 9-0 run in the final two minutes to claim a late lead. Toronto hit a three-pointer with 20 seconds left to tie the game, but an egregious Raptors foul with 0.4 seconds left allowed Minnesota to hit two free-throws to ice the game.
The Raptors dominated down low, outrebounding the Timberwolves 43-27 and outscoring them 52-22 in the paint. Toronto also outshot Minnesota 45.2 percent to 40 percent. What killed the Raptors was their three-point shooting and free-throws, as they shot 17.4 percent from long distance and 45 percent from the charity stripe.
Tyus Jones was the star for the Wolves, tallying 21 points, eight assists, three rebounds and three steals in the win. Xavier Silas also chipped in 22 points, while Adreian Payne submitted a 19-point, 10-rebound double-double. Only two players came off the bench to play more than two minutes for Minnesota, as they clearly wanted to run a short rotation in a summer-league elimination game.
Norman Powell was the only true threat for the Raptors in this game, as his 17 points were a team-high by a significant margin. In fact, no other player scored more than nine points. Rookie Jakob Poeltl recorded eight points and seven rebounds as the starting center. Last season’s first-round pick, Delon Wright, totaled seven points and eight rebounds before exiting with a dislocated right shoulder.
The Timberwolves will now face the winner of the game between the Denver Nuggets and Phoenix Suns, while the Raptors finish their summer league campaign with a 4-1 record.
