Towns' double-double carries Timberwolves past Thunder
MINNEAPOLIS -- Karl-Anthony Towns had his 10th straight double-double with 29 points and 17 rebounds and Ricky Rubio continued his strong play with 14 points and 14 assists for the Minnesota Timberwolves in a 96-86 win against the Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday.
Andrew Wiggins added 19 points for Minnesota (14-26), which won three games in a row to end a four-game homestand. Making another start in place of injured Zach LaVine, Brandon Rush hit three 3-pointers and scored 11 points.
Russell Westbrook had 21 points, 12 assists and 11 rebounds for his 19th triple-double of the season, the most in a season since Wilt Chamberlain had 31 in 1967-68. Enes Kanter added 21 points and eight rebounds off the bench as Oklahoma City (24-17) had its three-game winning streak snapped.
The Thunder shot 38.8 percent and had 19 turnovers.
With the explosive Westbrook on the court, it was Rubio who took control of Friday's game.
Rubio had six points and seven assists in the third quarter as Minnesota came from behind. Westbrook was 0-for-7 from the field in the third and had five turnovers in the period.
Rush scored five points as the Timberwolves put together a 13-0 run to lead by 14 in the fourth.
Westbrook and Kanter did most of the work in the second to give the Thunder the advantage. Westbrook had seven points in the quarter and 16 of his points in the first half.
Westbrook only shot 7 of 23 from the field and finished with 10 turnovers, one off his season high.
Rubio had 32 assists in the previous two games as Minnesota beat Dallas and Houston. His play has settled the young Timberwolves in the second half of the past three games. He fell one assist shy of the NBA high for a span of three games, which was set by Westbrook earlier this year.
NOTES: Minnesota SG Zach LaVine missed his second straight game with a left hip contusion. Brandon Rush started his second game in place of LaVine. ... Oklahoma City entered play with the second-most points in the paint in the NBA. With post players Steven Adams and Enes Kanter, and Russell Westbrook's ability to get to the basket, the Thunder are averaging 50.5 points in the paint. In the previous 13 meetings with the Timberwolves, Oklahoma City averaged 55.5 points in the paint, its highest against any team. ... Minnesota C Karl-Anthony Towns has 30 double-doubles this season, including nine in a row. The only players with more doubles-doubles this season are Houston's James Harden (34) and Westbrook (31). ... Westbrook was third among all Western Conference guards in the latest round of All-Star balloting. LaVine is 10th among guards. Towns is seventh among frontcourt players. ... The Timberwolves head on the road for a three-game trip starting Sunday in Dallas. The Thunder continue their six-game road trip Sunday in Sacramento.