Takeaways: Timberwolves hang on against Celtics, end three-game losing streak

Disaster almost struck the Timberwolves again Saturday, as a 12-point lead disappeared in the final minutes against Boston.

But with the score tied, and the Wolves having not scored in a while, the ball swung to Mike Conley. Conley hit an open three from the corner that felt like a pressure release in a 119-115 victory over the Celtics at Target Center.

“I think people were like ‘not again’ the way the game was flowing at that time,” Conley said of his go-ahead three. “We had some good looks and just wasn’t making them, so to finally get a good one to go at that time of the game was big.”

The Wolves ended a three-game losing streak with their first victory over a team with a winning record all season. They face another winning team in San Antonio on Sunday.

The Wolves’ defense woke up in the second half after giving up 69 points in the first half. Boston scored only 46 points after halftime. That helped the Wolves build a 110-98 lead with 3 minutes, 50 seconds to play.

But a 12-0 Boston run had the score tied at 110-110 with 1:38 to play before Conley hit the three.

Anthony Edwards (39 points) followed that with a drive to the hoop and a stepback three to seal it for the Wolves, who had six players finish in double figures. Julius Randle had 16 points, nine rebounds and six assists. The Wolves shot 44% from three-point range.

The Wolves didn’t have much interest in getting to the board in the first quarter. Boston had seven offensive rebounds, six of those coming in the first six minutes of the quarter. Neemias Queta had four of those, and he had eight points and seven rebounds in a first quarter that the Celtics led 36-32. Brown had 19 points on 8-for-12 shooting while Edwards had 11.

The lax Wolves defense in the first half enabled Brown to heat up to the tune of 11-for-18. He also added five rebounds and five assists. The Wolves’ defense had been coming around in the previous 10 games, but Saturday marked a step back for that unit, which struggled to keep up with Brown and the ball movement Boston’s offense generated. Boston shot 56% in the first half, 41% from three-point range. The Wolves shot 48%, but they trailed 69-59 at the half.

The Wolves flipped the 10-point deficit into a two-point lead entering the fourth at 94-92. The Wolves shot 8-for-13 from three-point range in the third as Edwards had 10 points. Randle also added a pair of threes. The Wolves defense also had its best quarter of the night, limiting Boston to 23.

BOXSCORE: Wolves 119, Boston 115

The game was a homecoming for a pair of former Wolves, Luka Garza and Josh Minott, both of whom signed as free agents with Boston in the offseason. Garza and Minott signed in hopes they might get playing time elsewhere, and that’s proven to be the case as they both came off the bench for the Celtics.