Portland, Ore. — The Portland Trail Blazers secured a 122-108 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Tuesday night, with Robert Williams and Jerami Grant each contributing 19 points to lead the team.
Williams, who recently returned from a knee injury, also recorded nine rebounds and three assists in a strong performance. For Minnesota, Naz Reid was the standout player with 28 points, while star guard Anthony Edwards added 26 points.
Despite entering the game as one of the NBA’s weakest 3-point shooting teams, the Blazers were on fire from beyond the arc, hitting 18 of 32 attempts for an impressive 56% shooting percentage.
Portland established an early advantage, leading 28-17 at the end of the first quarter, capped off by a buzzer-beating 3-pointer from Dalano Banton. Banton stepped up after Anfernee Simons was ruled out due to a chest injury, and Scoot Henderson picked up three fouls in the first quarter.
Takeaways Of The Game:
Timberwolves: Minnesota entered the matchup after a disappointing loss to the Miami Heat, where they squandered an 88-80 lead in the final five minutes. Coach Chris Finch took responsibility for the loss, stating, “I take responsibility for that entire game. That was a complete meltdown in a lot of ways. I didn’t have enough answers for the zone. It wasn’t a late-game thing as much as I thought the zone really stifled us.”
Blazers: Donovan Clingan made his NBA starting debut in place of Deandre Ayton, who missed the game with a sprained finger. Clingan made an immediate impact, blocking a shot from Rudy Gobert on the opening play and securing a steal shortly thereafter.
Key Moment
The Blazers had two significant buzzer-beating 3-pointers, with Banton hitting one at the end of the first quarter and Deni Avdija adding another to conclude the third quarter.
Key Stat
Portland dominated in bench points, outscoring Minnesota’s reserves 64-39.
