The Minnesota Timberwolves were outplayed and overmatched, and couldn’t keep up with this athletic Pistons team. Anthony Edwards scored a career high 53 points tonight shooting 16-31 from the floor and 10-15 from three-point range. It wasn’t even close enough to will this unspirited Wolves team to a victory. Besides Edwards, Julius Randle had 17 points, and 15 points in the 2nd half after shooting 1-5 in the first half.
Minnesota hit seven threes in the first quarter making it a 33-28 Pistons lead at the end of the first half, but it seemed like the Pistons had an answer every time the Wolves showed some life. Once Edwards sat down to start the 2nd quarter the Pistons went on a huge run outscoring the Wolves 22-15 in the quarter, holding the Wolves to 5-20 shooting with 5 turnovers. Careless passes and stagnant ball movement allowed the Pistons to push their lead to 55-43 at the half.
Ausar Thompson was a big reason the Wolves couldn’t get any momentum, he was an absolute beast on the defensive side, and efficient on offense as well. Ausar had a career-high six steals, five of them in the first half, he had 1o points on 5-5 shooting mostly dunks and layups. Edwards had 13 of Minnesota’s 15 total points in the 2nd quarter.
With Minnesota down 12 at the half, the Pistons pushed their pace even more with hot shooting by Malik Beasley, he finished with 23 points off the bench and hit 6-14 from three-point land. The Wolves got a little help from Randle in the second half as they got the lead down to nine but it came down to points in the paint 58-34 Pistons and fastbreak points 17-9 Pistons that was too much for Minnesota.
Tobias Harris also chipped in with 16 points and 11 rebounds. The Pistons were the aggressor in this game, getting to all the loose balls, drawing offensive fouls, and grabbing offensive rebounds for second-chance points. The Pistons outrebounded the Wolves 47-33 with 13 rebounds coming on the offensive side of the ball. The Pistons get their third win in a row beating the Wolves 119-105 and are now one game under .500.
Cade Cunningham’s All-Star Bid Gaining Momentum
Cunningham was brilliant again for the Pistons tonight, scoring a season-high 40 points going 15-29 from the floor, and adding 9 assists and 6 rebounds. His play this year and the fact that he has stayed healthy are a big reason the Pistons have won 6 of their last 7 games and have climbed into the #9 spot in the Eastern Conference standings. He has been battling a sore knee this year but it didn’t seem to affect him tonight, even on a back-to-back set.
Cunningham has put up career highs in points 23.6 PPG, rebounds 6.7 per game, assists 9.5 per game, three-point percentage 37%, and minutes 35.6 per game. It will be interesting to see if Cunningham stays healthy because tonight’s game shows how good he can be in this Piston system. You should see him in the All-Star game this year.
The Road Ahead for the Wolves
Minnesota is now back to .500 with tonight’s loss in Detroit, currently holding on to the 10th spot in the Western Conference standings. The Timberwolves will come home to play The LA Clippers Monday night at the Target Center and then travel to New Orleans and Orlando. Minnesota must win these games as they have had the Clipper’s number lately. New Orlean’s top two players are still out and are a dreadful 6-29 this season. Orlando might be without their best player, Jalen Suggs as he left in a wheelchair because of back spasms. Orlando is still a good young team but Suggs is a major piece to
Recently injured guard Rob Dillingham had an MRI at Mayo Clinic and was confirmed a Grade 2 lateral right ankle sprain. His return to play timeline is 1-2 weeks and he will be re-evaluated in one week. The Wolves could use Dillingham’s energy and quickness to help spark the bench play.
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