Spurs beat Timberwolves, stay perfect on the road
MINNEAPOLIS -- Another road game, another win for San Antonio.
The Spurs topped the Minnesota Timberwolves by a 105-91 score on Tuesday at Target Center to improve to 13-0 on the road. It's the second game in as many nights in which San Antonio (18-4) trailed at the half before rallying to keep its flawless road record intact.
Kawhi Leonard scored 31 points on 11-of-15 shooting while guard Patty Mills chipped in 15 points, five assists and four rebounds off the bench for the Spurs.
Minnesota (6-15) got 25 points from guard Zach LaVine, who has scored 20 or more points nine times this season. The Timberwolves second-year big man Karl-Anthony Towns had an off night, shooting just 3 for 16 from the floor for 11 points. Towns did grab 14 boards but his 11 points were tied for his second-lowest total of the season.
A big third quarter helped the Spurs solidify another road victory. After trailing 46-43 at halftime, San Antonio outscored Minnesota 29-18 in the third. Leonard had 10 points in the quarter for the Spurs, who one night earlier outscored Milwaukee 36-25 in the third quarter to overcome a halftime deficit.
Minnesota jumped out to an early first-quarter lead, leading 10-1 in the opening stages of the game. But like they have done numerous times this season, the Timberwolves squandered their early advantage. That lead shrank to just three points after the first quarter and remained that way at halftime.
Kris Dunn was a bright spot for Minnesota in the loss. The rookie point guard finished the game with 15 points in 17 minutes. His playing time has fluctuated so far in his first season as he and Tyus Jones have split time as Ricky Rubio's backup.
NOTES: Spurs G Tony Parker did not play Tuesday night due to a left knee contusion. Parker was injured in the second half of Monday's game against the Milwaukee Bucks. He had been held out of San Antonio's two games prior to Tuesday. Parker is averaging a career-low 25.7 minutes per game this season. ... San Antonio rookie Nico Laprovittola started at point guard in place of the injured Tony Parker. It was his third career NBA start. ... Timberwolves coach Tom Thibodeau joined Spurs coach Gregg Popovich several times last season to share ideas while Thibodeau was between head coaching jobs. Both coaches reminisced Tuesday about what they learned from each other last year. "You can't help but learn when you're there. He was great to me," Thibodeau said. Added Popovich: "We're just coaches, we can't think of everything on our own. We have to steal from people and get some ideas from someone else."