Timberwolves 97, Pistons 91
Thaddeus Young scored 19 points and Minnesota held off a furious rally to win its home opener.
Nikola Pekovic finished with 17 points and 10 rebounds while Ricky Rubio had 11 points, eight assists and seven rebounds for the Timberwolves, who lost all of a 19-point second-half lead before finishing strong to defeat Detroit for the ninth straight time. Mo Williams chipped in 13 points off the bench and Kevin Martin added 12 after sitting out the season opener Wednesday at Memphis with an ankle injury.
Caron Butler scored all 24 of his points in the second half - 16 in the fourth quarter - to fuel Detroit's rally. D.J. Augustin had 20 points for the Pistons, who received 41 points on 19-of-53 shooting from their starting five.
After rookie Andrew Wiggins' basket gave Minnesota a 72-53 lead late in the third, Augustin's short jumper ignited a 12-3 burst to close the period and Butler had nine points in under two minutes early in the fourth as Detroit pulled within 80-79. Butler's 3-pointer with 1:43 to go forged an 88-88 tie, but Young answered with a 3 of his own, Williams scored with 52 seconds left and the Pistons missed four straight shots and three straight free throws down the stretch.
Neither team led by more than four points in the first half but the Timberwolves scored the first six points out of the break to gain a 51-44 lead and force a timeout by the Pistons. Andre Drummond picked up three fouls in 33 seconds and Brandon Jennings was whistled for a technical foul moments later as Minnesota's lead eventually ballooned to 19.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Drummond had 11 points and 12 rebounds while Kentavious Caldwell-Pope also scored 11 points for Detroit. ... Minnesota's last loss in the series was at home on April 14, 2010. ... Pistons F Greg Monroe served the second game of a two-game suspension for a DUI. He will be active Saturday versus Brooklyn.