Wolves put their foot down in fourth, crush Warriors for fourth straight win

Minnesota outscored Golden State 29-18 in the final frame to pull away Friday night.

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) makes a 3-pointer over Golden State Warriors guard Buddy Hield during the second quarter at Chase Center in San Francisco on Dec. 6, 2024. / Neville E. Guard-Imagn Images

The Golden State Warriors were slowly chipping away, but the Minnesota Timberwolves never let them get back and put their foot down in the fourth quarter on the way to a 107-90 victory, their fourth straight, Friday night in San Francisco.

The Wolves (12-10) at one point led by as many as 19 points, but their lead was down to 80-77 early in the fourth quarter. Then Mike Conley drilled a corner 3-pointer. Anthony Edwards hit another 3, drew a foul and hit the ensuing free throw.

The lead was back to 10, and that was more or less enough as both teams struggled to make shots down the stretch.

Nickeil Alexander-Walker hit a 3 with just under six minutes to go, which felt like the dagger. Edwards, who finished with a game-high 30 points, nine assists and four rebounds, hit a jumper the next possession to make it a 94-79 lead. Another layup, foul and a free throw from Edwards made it an 18-point edge and ended any hopes at a Warriors comeback.

The Wolves outscored the Warriors 29-18 in the fourth quarter.

Rudy Gobert continued his torrid stretch with 17 points, 12 rebounds, an assist and a steal. Julius Randle finished with 16 points, nine rebounds and four assists. Mike Conley had 13 points, four assists, four rebounds and four steals.

It wasn't a particularly pretty game, but that in part was due to the Wolves continuing to impose their defensive will, which has powered the current win streak. After playing to a 31-31 draw after one quarter of play, Minnesota held the Warriors (13-9) scoreless for a six-minute stretch in the second quarter, building a lead as large as 19 points. They were getting their hands on passes, forcing turnovers and it was a 3 from Edwards that gave them their largest lead to that point.

The Warriors had 22 turnovers on the night — Minnesota had 12 steals — and the Wolves had 21.

Golden State, led by future Hall of Famer Steph Curry, who scored a team-high 23 points to go along with four assists and two rebounds, was never going to go away quietly. The Warriors closed the first half on an 11-2 run to cut their deficit to 10 at the halftime break, and they kept their momentum going in the third quarter. But they ran out of gas in the fourth.

The result was the Wolves' fourth straight win, and third in dominant fashion.