Harden, Rockets hold off Timberwolves
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[March 19, 2018]
James Harden buried a 3-pointer
inside the final minute, and the visiting Houston Rockets completed
a season sweep of the Minnesota Timberwolves with a 129-120 win on
Sunday at Target Center.
The Timberwolves roared back from a 25-point deficit, cutting the
margin to 115-110 on a Karl-Anthony Towns dunk with just under four
minutes remaining. Houston responded just in time, with Clint Capela
corralling an offensive rebound before feeding Trevor Ariza for a
corner 3-pointer.
Harden then delivered a floater in the lane plus a pair of free
throws before his 3-pointer pushed the Houston lead to 125-116 with
58.8 seconds remaining. Harden, who tallied nine consecutive points
for the Rockets after things grew tense, totaled 34 points and 12
assists.
When Chris Paul sank a trey with 10:09 left in the third quarter,
the Rockets led 83-58. However, Nemanja Bjelica (15 points) and
Derrick Rose (14 points) led a third-quarter revival for Minnesota,
which continued to rally after Rockets reserve Gerald Green (12
points) was ejected early in the fourth. Minnesota rode a 19-6 rally
into contention before Ariza restored order.
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Towns paired 20 points with 18 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who
have lost five of seven games. Jeff Teague (23 points, 11 assists)
also recorded a double-double for Minnesota.
Paul had 18 points and nine assists, and Capela added 16 points, 12
boards and three blocks. Houston hit just 5 of 16 3-point attempts
in the second half, but Ariza and Harden delivered when needed.
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![](../images/031918pics/sports55.jpg)
Rockets guard James Harden (13) dribbles in the first quarter
against Minnesota Timberwolves guard Jeff Teague (0) at Target
Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
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Two quick first-quarter scoring bursts enabled Houston to build its
comfortable lead. P.J. Tucker drilled back-to-back corner treys to
ignite a 10-0 run that lifted Houston to a 17-9 lead. After
Minnesota responded with consecutive 3-pointers, the Rockets reeled
off the next 12 points.
While Ryan Anderson capped that spurt with a 3-pointer, it was Green
who suddenly erupted, following his transition dunk with a
fast-break 3-pointer for a 10-point advantage. When Paul closed the
first period with a difficult fade-away jumper at the buzzer,
Houston led 38-23.
The Timberwolves didn't offer anything resembling defensive
resistance in the second quarter, and they trailed 77-56 at the
break.
--Field Level Media
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