McDaniels shows no mercy as Wolves hunt down Clippers

Jaden McDaniels isn't the first player that comes to mind when mentioning key players on the Minnesota Timberwolves roster, but the forward is proving to be a problem for the Los Angeles Clippers.

The third-year forward had his second straight strong game against the Clippers, scoring 20 points Tuesday night in the Timberwolves' 108-101 victory that snapped a three-game losing streak.

"This is a big win. We lost two games we could have won. This time we were able to get stops," said McDaniels, who had 18 points in the last meeting against the Clippers.

It was McDaniels' fourth 20-point game this season. He is averaging 11.6 points this season, but 15.4 over the past five games. The Timberwolves (32-32) moved up to eighth in the Western Conference while the Clippers (33-31) remained sixth. The fourth through 10th spots were separated by only three games.

"Everybody played really well and that's what we've been waiting for," Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. "We've been hit and miss with guys but we really needed an effort like tonight."

Anthony Edwards added 18 points and Rudy Gobert scored 16, including a key dunk near the end.

Paul George had 25 points and Kawhi Leonard 23 for the Clippers, who have dropped three straight. Los Angeles' last two losses before Tuesday came in overtime, including a 176-175 double-overtime loss on Friday night to Sacramento.

"We just got to continue to drill it," George said. "New guys here, new rotations, new personnel. We got to drill it.

"Once we get it, we'll get back to what we were doing before the break. I have no concern on that end."

The Clippers had 25 turnovers that led to 29 Minnesota points. The Timberwolves also had a 60-38 advantage in points in the paint.

"We just got to get guys used to playing with one another, but we just can't have the careless turnovers," coach Tyronn Lue said. "Those are the ones that kill you, and we had it under control for a while but now we gotta get it back."

The Timberwolves opened up an 88-75 lead with 11:20 remaining in the fourth quarter. The Clippers slowly whittled away and got to 105-101 after a 3-pointer by Russell Westbrook with 42.2 seconds remaining, but Gobert's dunk quashed any hopes of a Los Angeles rally.

Tip-ins

Timberwolves: Naz Reid and Kyle Anderson had 12 points apiece. ...They first took the lead with 5:39 remaining in the second quarter on Taurean Prince's layup that was set up after a steal by Mike Conley to make it 45-44.

Clippers: Westbrook had 14 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds. ... Norman Powell had 13 points off the bench, and also was called for a technical foul in the third quarter.

Agencies Via Xinhua