Collin Sexton scored 26 points and Jarrett Allen had another 23 with 18 rebounds to guide the Cleveland Cavaliers to a 100-98 win over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Monday night, dividing the series on a reciprocal visit.
Darius Garland finished with 19 points and 11 assists for the Cavaliers, who had lost four of their last five games, including a 109-104 setback at Minnesota the night before. Allen blocked five shots in his first start since he was acquired from Brooklyn on January 14.
D’Angelo Russell had 18 points and last draft pick Anthony Edwards had 13 in his third start with the Timberwolves. Minnesota fell for the eighth straight time on the road and is 2-8 since Jan. 13.
Cleveland had a 98-91 lead with 19 seconds remaining, but Minnesota edged closer to two thanks to Russell’s 3-pointer and Malik Beasley’s basket.
Taurean Prince hit two penalty shots with 3.9 seconds remaining to extend the Cavaliers’ lead, making Naz Reid’s final layup irrelevant.
Cleveland did not have center Andre Drummond (back), who leads the NBA with 15.1 rebounds per game. Drummond had 25 points and 22 boards in Sunday’s game.
Minnesota opened the fourth period on an 11-1 attack to take their first lead from the first quarter by setting the score 78-77 off Jaylen Nowell’s spike. But Cleveland responded with six straight points to take a definitive advantage.
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