National Basketball Association
L.A. Clippers 122, Minnesota 111
When: 8:00 PM ET, Tuesday, March 26, 2019
Where: Target Center, Minneapolis, Minnesota
Officials:
#29 Mark Lindsay, #36 Brent Barnaky, #8 Marc Davis
Attendance:
13176
By Field Level Media
Danilo Gallinari scored 25 points, and Lou Williams added 20 as the visiting Los Angeles Clippers officially clinched a playoff spot and increased their winning streak to an NBA-best six games with a 122-111 victory Tuesday over the Minnesota Timberwolves.
Montrezl Harrell scored 18 points as the Clippers broke a tie in the Western Conference standings with the Utah Jazz and moved back into sole possession of fifth place with seven games remaining. Five of those last seven Clippers games are in Los Angeles.
The Clippers shot 54 percent from the field, 50 percent from 3-point range and 100 percent from the free-throw line, giving them the first 50-50-100 game in the NBA since the Golden State Warriors did it on March 29 of last year.
The lone downside for Los Angeles was that by clinching a postseason berth, the Clippers must give their 2019 first-round draft pick to the Boston Celtics to complete the Jeff Green trade of February 2016.
Karl-Anthony Towns scored 24 points with 13 rebounds as the Timberwolves lost for the sixth time in their past seven games. Minnesota was eliminated from playoff contention Thursday.
The Clippers led 42-23 after one quarter and built their advantage to as many as 25 points in the second quarter before taking a 75-55 lead into halftime. Minnesota cut the deficit to six points at 104-98 with seven minutes to play before the Clippers pulled away again down the stretch.
Towns' team-best point total for Minnesota came despite going without a field goal in the first half and not making his first basket from the field until 4:53 remained in the third quarter. Andrew Wiggins scored 22 points while Dario Saric added 18 and Tyus Jones had 13.
The short-handed Timberwolves were playing without forwards Robert Covington (knee), Luol Deng (Achilles) and Taj Gibson (calf), as well as guards Derrick Rose (elbow) and Jeff Teague (foot).
Not only do the Clippers own the longest winning streak in the NBA, they are a league-best 15-4 since Feb. 9, while also winning 11 of their last 12 games. They are 3-0 on their current four-game road trip that ends Thursday with a stern test at Milwaukee against the Eastern Conference-leading Bucks.
Gallinari added 10 rebounds, and Garrett Temple scored 15 points as Los Angeles returns to the playoffs after missing out on a spot in the postseason last year with a 42-40 record. It will be the Clippers' seventh playoff appearance in the last eight years.
Despite the victory, there was some level of concern for the Clippers after guard Patrick Beverley left in the third quarter and did not return following an apparent right hip injury.
The Clippers were also playing without rookie guard Landry Shamet, who is day-to-day after leaving Sunday's game at New York with a left ankle impingement.
-- Field Level Media
Top Game Performances
| L.A. Clippers |
|
Minnesota |
|
Danilo Gallinari 25 |
Scoring |
Karl-Anthony Towns 24 |
|
Lou Williams 7 |
Assists |
Tyus Jones 8 |
|
Danilo Gallinari 10 |
Rebounds |
Karl-Anthony Towns 13 |
|
Danilo Gallinari 5 |
Free Throws Made |
Karl-Anthony Towns 10 |
|
JaMychal Green 2 |
Steals |
Josh Okogie 3 |
|
Patrick Beverley 2 |
Blocks |
Josh Okogie 1 |
Team Stats Summary
| Team |
Points |
FG% |
3PM-3PA |
FTM-FTA |
Assists |
Rebounds |
Blocks |
Steals |
Turnovers |
| L.A. Clippers
|
122 |
54.1 |
16-32 |
14-14 |
30 |
51 |
4 |
8 |
18 |
| Minnesota
|
111 |
43.6 |
9-27 |
20-33 |
22 |
43 |
1 |
13 |
10 |
Upcoming Games
-
Minnesota will play their next game at home against Golden State. The Timberwolves have a W/L % of .455 after a win and .439 after a loss.
-
L.A. Clippers will play their next game on the road against Milwaukee. The Clippers have a W/L % of .578 after a win and .633 after a loss.
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