Bones Hyland tied a season high by scoring 23 points off the bench, and the Minnesota Timberwolves’ defence was suffocating in the fourth quarter of their 102-92 road win over the Boston Celtics on Sunday night.

The Celtics jumped out to a 23-14 lead at the end of the first quarter and expanded their advantage to 29-14 early in the second before the Timberwolves responded with a 21-4 run to take the lead.

Boston took an 81-78 lead with 10:12 remaining in the game, but Minnesota’s 16-0 stretch over the next five-plus minutes gave them the lead for good.

In the fourth quarter, Boston shot 5 of 26 from the field, including a pair of field goals by Max Shulga after the outcome had been decided. The Celtics were 0 of 7 from 3-point range in the final frame.

Jaden McDaniels scored 19 points, and Ayo Dosunmu finished with 17 points, eight rebounds and six assists as the Timberwolves improved to 3-1 since Anthony Edwards went down with a knee injury.

The win vaulted the Timberwolves (44-28) into a three-way tie for the No. 4 seed in the Western Conference with the Houston Rockets and Denver Nuggets.

Jaylen Brown scored a game-high 29 points for the Celtics (47-24) but was 9 of 26 from the field. Jayson Tatum had 16 points and 11 rebounds in 31 minutes as Boston saw their four-game winning streak end.

 

Jokić's triple-double paces Nuggets over Blazers

Nikola Jokić had 22 points, 14 rebounds and 14 assists for his NBA-leading 28th triple-double of the season, and the seized control in the second half to beat the Portland Trail Blazers 128-112.

Jokic helped orchestrate a balanced Denver attack with seven players scoring in double figures, including Peyton Watson, who had 14 in his first game since Feb. 4 after sitting out with a hamstring strain.

Jamal Murray had 22 points and seven assists, and Cameron Johnson made five 3-pointers to finish with 19 points.

Christian Brown added 15 points on 5-for-7 shooting for the Nuggets (44-28), who shot nearly 55% as a team.

Deni Avdija had 23 points, six rebounds and 14 assists for the Blazers, while Donovan Clingan connected on four 3-pointers and finished with 18 points and 13 rebounds.

Portland (35-37) had their three-game winning streak snapped as they prepare to play the next four games at home.

 

Suns rip Raptors to end skid

Devin Booker scored 25 points, Jalen Green added 20 points and seven assists, and the Phoenix Suns cruised past the Toronto Raptors 120-98 to end their five-game losing streak.

In a game in which both teams shot at least 50% from the field, the Suns created 15 more shot attempts than their opponents by out-rebounding the Raptors 43-30 and by making 18 3-pointers to Toronto’s nine.

Collin Gillespie was 4 of 6 from deep to finish with 16 points, while Jordan Goodwin added 14 for Phoenix (40-32), who are a virtual lock to finish as the No. 7 seed in the West.

The Suns led by as many as 31 points before coasting the rest of the way.

Scottie Barnes was 8 for 9 from the field and finished with 17 points to lead the Raptors (39-31), who never led.

Toronto ended the night slotted as the No. 5 team in the Eastern Conference but with just a 2.5-game lead over the 10th-seeded Charlotte Hornets in an unexpectedly deep pool of potential play-off teams.