sport news NBA: Karl-Anthony Towns scores 22 points in successful Timberwolves return trends now

Karl-Anthony Towns scored 22 points in his long-awaited return from a strained right calf as the Minnesota Timberwolves rallied to beat the Atlanta Hawks 125-124 on Wednesday night.

Naz Reid added 26 points off the bench and Jaden McDaniels had 25 for Minnesota, which trailed by 10 points with 7:18 remaining but used a 19-5 run to get back in the game. Atlanta led 124-123 with 50.5 seconds left after a pair of free throws by Trae Young.

Towns then hit two free throws with 3.6 seconds left to seal the win. He was back after missing 51 games for Minnesota, which had lost three of four and slid to ninth in the Western Conference beginning the night.

Rudy Gobert added 12 points and 12 rebounds for the Timberwolves.

Young scored 29 points and De'Andre Hunter added 16 for Atlanta, which was playing the second game of a back-to-back after beating Detroit 129-107 Tuesday night with second-leading scorer Dejounte Murray missing both games with a non-COVID-19 illness.

Saddiq Bey had 16 points off the bench for the Hawks.

Atlanta, who shot 54.2 percent from the field and hit 12 of 26 3-pointers, started the day eighth in the Eastern Conference.

They were 2 1/2 games behind Miami and one game ahead of Toronto.

Towns had been out since November 28 with the injury. Minnesota had a 10-11 record when he went out as the team struggled at times to adapt to having two big men on the court together in Towns and newcomer Gobert.

Towns, a three-time All-Star, received a special pregame introduction and was welcomed back by big applause from the home crowd.

He returned to a team that found its rhythm with Anthony Edwards carrying the scoring load with a host of veterans filling complementary roles.

The Timberwolves also traded Towns' good friend D'Angelo Russell and acquired Mike Conley at the trade deadline.

With Edwards missing time due to a right ankle sprain, Minnesota had dropped a bit in the packed West.

HEAT 127, KNICKS 120

Jimmy Butler had 35 points, Tyler Herro scored 14 of his 22 in the fourth quarter as Miami moved closer to avoiding the play-in tournament by beating New York.

Herro made four 3-pointers in the fourth for the Heat, who led by 11 in the third, lost the lead briefly, then took it back for good with a 16-2 run midway through the final quarter.

Herro and Max Strus each had a pair of 3s during the clinching run for Miami (40-34), which is just percentage points behind Brooklyn (39-33) in the race for the sixth and final guaranteed playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Nets visit the Heat on Saturday.

It was the 700th career win for Miami coach Erik Spoelstra.

New York's Julius Randle, coming off a 57-point effort Monday against Minnesota, was held to 15. RJ Barrett scored 26 for the Knicks, who also got 25 from Jalen Brunson.

LAKERS 122, SUNS 111

Anthony Davis had 27 points and nine rebounds, D'Angelo Russell added 26 points as the Los Angeles Lakers snapped a six-game losing streak against Phoenix with a 122-111 victory over the depleted Suns on Wednesday night.

Austin Reaves had 25 points and a career-high 11 assists after moving into the starting lineup for the Lakers, who improved to 7-5 in LeBron James' latest injury absence with an impressive second half against the powerhouse Suns.

Devin Booker scored 25 of his 33 points in the second half for Phoenix, which has lost five of six. Chris Paul had 18 points for the Suns, who hadn't lost to the Lakers since May 2021.

BUCKS 130, SPURS 94

Giannis Antetokounmpo had 31 points and 14 rebounds in just 24 minutes as NBA-leading Milwaukee rolled against San Antonio.

The Bucks extended their Eastern Conference advantage to 2½ games over Boston as they prepare for a four-game road swing that includes a matchup Saturday with the Western Conference-leading Denver Nuggets.

Antetokounmpo rested the entire fourth quarter and watched the Bucks put the finishing touches on their most lopsided win of the season

Bobby Portis and Khris Middleton added 19 points each for the Bucks, who never trailed. Middleton also had 10 assists, while Portis had 10 rebounds.

Devin Vassell scored 16 to lead the Spurs.

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