Julian AndrewsWeb Editorial AssociateTwitter
The Wolves are headed to the playoffs!
With an exciting 112-106 overtime win over the Denver Nuggets on Wednesday night, the Wolves clinched a 2018 postseason berth, their first playoff appearance since 2004.
The Wolves were led by Jimmy Butler, who scored 31 with five rebounds, five assists, a steal and a block, and Karl-Anthony Towns, who finished with a phenomenal line of 26 points and 14 rebounds. Towns also had the highlight of the night, an incredible driving jam from behind the three-point line.
The Wolves led 62-54at halftime, but the Nuggets came back and tied the game at 101-101 with 1:59 remaining in the fourth quarter. That was the final basket of regulation. Overtime was decidedly low-scoring, but a basket from Jeff Teague and some clutch free throws from Butler and Andrew Wiggins gave the Wolves enough offense to earn the win behind their strong defense.
Taj Gibson paced the Wolves tonight with his poised and energetic play, including an absolutely massive defensive stand against Nikola Jokic in the final seconds of regulation, and Wiggins was excellent as well, shooting 55.6 percent from the field, including three of five from behind the three-point line. His free-throws at the end of overtime also iced the game for Minnesota.
The Wolves came to play tonight, and in an electric atmosphere at Target Center, they delivered in exciting fashion. Tomorrow they will have to prepare for the playoffs, but today they can celebrate a job well done.
With the Pelicans and Thunder both winning, the Wolves earn the No. 8 seed and will face the Houston Rockets in the first round. Dates and times have not yet been released but the earliest the Wolves could play is Saturday