Wolves get payback in 41-point blowout of Pelicans

Julius Randle scored 20 points on 7-for-11 shooting from the floor as the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised to a 134-93 win over the New Orleans Pelicans on Friday night in Minneapolis.

Anthony Edwards and Jaden McDaniels added 17 points apiece for Minnesota (41-31), which bounced back from a loss against the Pelicans two nights earlier. Rudy Gobert registered a double-double with 15 points and 11 rebounds.

C.J. McCollum scored 15 points to lead New Orleans (19-52). Bruce Brown scored 14 points on 5-for-8 shooting and Yves Missi pulled down a team-high 10 rebounds.

Pelicans big man Zion Williamson did not play because of a low back contusion.

The Timberwolves shot 53.9 percent (48 of 89) overall and 43.2 percent (19 of 44) from 3-point range. The Pelicans shot 50 percent (34 of 68) from the field and 35.5 percent (11 of 31) from beyond the arc.

Minnesota won the assist-to-turnover ratio by a wide margin. The Timberwolves tallied 40 assists and 13 turnovers, and the Pelicans finished with 20 assists to go along with 25 turnovers.

The Pelicans trailed 97-72 at the end of the third quarter.

Randle made a pair of free throws to give Minnesota a 20-point lead with 7:45 remaining in the third quarter. The Timberwolves increased their advantage to 26 in the final minute of the quarter on a basket by Randle.

Jaylen Clark put Minnesota at the 100-point mark when he drained a 3-pointer in the first minute of the fourth quarter. Gobert made a steal moments later, and Clark finished the sequence with a dunk to give him five points in 21 seconds.

The Timberwolves built a 62-48 lead at the half.

McCollum made a jump shot to cut the deficit to 49-43 with 3:02 remaining in the first half.

Gobert made a pair of free throws on the opposite end of the court to boost Minnesota's lead to 51-43 with 2:44 left. That started a 14-5 run for the Timberwolves to finish the first half.

--Field Level Media