Lakers 104, Timberwolves 91
Nick Young scored 25 points off the bench and Pau Gasol collected 21 points, 13 rebounds and eight assists as Los Angeles downed visiting Minnesota.
Xavier Henry scored 21 points while starting in place of Kobe Bryant, who is expected to miss six weeks after fracturing his knee on Tuesday. Jodie Meeks scored 17 points for the Lakers, who have won three of four to move back to .500 at 13-13.
Kevin Love recorded 25 points and 13 rebounds and Nikola Pekovic added 22 points and 13 boards for the Timberwolves, who shot 34.7 percent from the field. Kevin Martin scored 14 points while Corey Brewer was held to five on 0-of-8 shooting.
Minnesota was within 90-89 when Gasol grabbed an offensive rebound and slammed it back before knocking down a 3-pointer on the next possession to give the Lakers a six-point edge with 3:58 left. Young’s 3-pointer with 1:59 remaining made it a 100-91 gap and Los Angeles pulled away down the stretch.
The Lakers shot 58.3 percent in the first half but turned the ball over 13 times and allowed the Timberwolves to close the half with a 20-7 run and grab a 53-51 lead at the break. Young completed a four-point play to spark an 8-1 run closing the third quarter that sent Los Angeles into the final stanza with an 81-76 cushion.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Minnesota has dropped 23 of its last 24 meetings with the Lakers. … Los Angeles improved to 11-9 without Bryant on the season. … Young went 4-of-6 from 3-point range and is 17-for-30 from beyond the arc over the last five contests.