A foul ending in OT as late Lakers free throws sink Wolves

After the game there was a different in opinion. At least when it came to one late, important and, ultimately, costly call.

"He fouled him," Wolves coach Flip Saunders said.

"Hell no," countered Wolves guard Zach LaVine.

On just about everything else, Saunders and his players agreed after the Wolves dropped a 101-99 overtime game to the Lakers on Wednesday night at Target Center.

Chase Budinger's clutch corner three-pointer sent the game into overtime tied at 90, but it was LaVine's foul on Jordan Clarkson with 0.3 seconds left in OT, with the score tied, that proved the difference. Clarkson, who scored eight of his 20 points in overtime, went to the line and hit both shots.

"You hope every time you get an opportunity, [you learn]," Saunders said of LaVine.

"You can't call that with point-three seconds left," LaVine said, still smarting.

Before Clarkson's free throws decided matters, the game shaped up as two teams with bruised and battered lineups, gerrymandered rotations and little to play for other than draft lottery position. Oh, and the development of young players.

Given those stakes, which team came out ahead?

You might argue it was the Wolves. They got a game-high 27 points, six rebounds, four assists and two blocks from Andrew Wiggins. And 18 points, six rebounds and five assists came from LaVine, whose determined drives to the hoop resulted in free throws that kept the Wolves in the game in regulation.

Indeed, in the fourth quarter — when the Wolves rallied from down nine to force overtime — it was the team's youth that led the way. With, of course, a huge assist from Budinger, whose play of late has been impressive.

And the Wolves, who have gone to overtime in three of their past four games — two of them victories — have gotten even more opportunity (and minutes) for those young players to learn.

"We've been battling with seven, eight players, going into OT on three of the last four," Wiggins said. "It should have been double OT tonight. But we're learning, doing the best we can. … It puts us in positions we haven't been in this year."

The Wolves (16-55) remained last in the Western Conference, behind the Lakers (19-51).

Down 75-66 early in the final quarter, the Wolves' youth made a push. A 16-6 run allowed them to take an 82-81 lead on Gorgui Dieng's basket with 5 minutes, 51 seconds left.

Still, the Wolves were down five late at 90-85, after Clarkson's 14-footer with 1:38 left.

But LaVine made two free throws with 48.6 seconds left. After a Lakers miss, Budinger — who finished with 22 points off the bench — hit that three-pointer with 6.6 seconds left to force overtime.

The Wolves held two two-point leads in the extra session — at 94-92 on Lorenzo Brown's layup with 3:22 left and at 2:26 on Wiggins' three-point play that made it 97-95.

Clarkson hit two free throws, then drove an empty lane for a layup with 44.8 seconds left. Dieng hit a 15-footer with 18.7 seconds left to tie it a final time. On the ensuing possession, Wiggins blocked Wayne Ellington's shot, but Clarkson got the rebound, was fouled and hit both free throws.

And while LaVine disputed the call, after the game he sounded like someone who had learned a valuable lesson.

"I can't let him get near the ball," said LaVine, who missed an open three-pointer with 24 seconds left. "If I'd made that, we wouldn't have had that situation. So I'm kind of disappointed."

Notes

• Wolves coach Flip Saunders said Ricky Rubio and Kevin Garnett will play again this season. Rubio missed his fourth consecutive game and his sixth in seven games because of an ankle injury. Garnett's sore knee kept him out of his eighth game in a row. "[Rubio] will play again, KG will play again, too, I'm sure," Saunders said. "It's just they have some soreness when they either run or they walk. Their gaits are not where they need to be." After Wednesday's game, the Wolves had 11 games remaining. The season ends April 15 vs. Oklahoma City. "Until their gaits are where they need to be, they won't play," Saunders said.

• After passing his concussion protocol, center Justin Hamilton returned to action Wednesday. Hamilton missed four games after taking a knee to his head against Brooklyn on March 16.