PORTLAND, ORE. – The Timberwolves looked like a team lost without D'Angelo Russell over the previous three games. Over that stretch the Wolves said they missed his shotmaking, and, in a twist given his reputation, his defense.
D'Angelo Russell's return helps Wolves top Portland 116-111, end losing streak at five
The point guard scored 18 points, including back-to-back three-pointers during a fourth-quarter comeback.
December 13, 2021 at 4:37AM
When Russell returned to the lineup Sunday, he provided a bit of both at the right time as the Wolves defeated Portland 116-111 to end their five-game losing streak.
The game could have gone the way of their past five with the Wolves trailing by as much as seven in the fourth quarter, but Russell helped bring them back in a performance that was a flashback to a previous win over Philadelphia.
"He's needed," Anthony Edwards said. "His IQ, the leadership he brings and everything he brings to the table every night."
With the Wolves down 102-98, Russell pulled back for his customary rainbow three-pointer to cut it to one. After a bucket by Portland guard Anfernee Simons, who had 26 points, Russell came down and repeated the same motions. Swish. Tie game, 104-104.
"It happened to be me having the ball and made the shots," Russell said. "Simple as that."
Russell rebounded a Damian Lillard miss on the next trip down before finding Karl-Anthony Towns (23 points, 10 rebounds) in against Lillard for an easy bucket. The Wolves had their first lead since the beginning of the fourth quarter.
"We've seen it before," coach Chris Finch said of Russell. "I thought he managed the end of the game really, really well."
Added Towns: "He was fantastic. Hit some big shots when we needed him to. They adjusted their defense on the fourth quarter and we got it to the right man."
Then Russell came up with a play on defense that underscored why he has the team's highest defensive rating among regular rotation players.
"He has really good defensive instincts, particularly when he's off the ball," Finch said. "He's just really good at being in the right place."
That's where Russell was when he made a heady play off the ball to intercept a pass from Norman Powell that led to a fast-break opportunity for Anthony Edwards (24 points). Robert Covington fouled Edwards, who hit both free throws for a 110-106 lead. Edwards said he saw Lillard as he "crept" out to the corner from under the basket and then saw Powell looking in Lillard's direction.
"I seen him look corner and I knew Dame was there so I just broke towards it," Russell said. "Bad pass and it was a steal."
Russell finished with 18 points and five assists while Jarred Vanderbilt contributed a healthy dose of hustle down the stretch with 14 points and eight rebounds, including a put-back off a Russell miss.
The Wolves also banded together defensively in a way that they hadn't in their past five games. Patrick Beverley helped limit Lillard (24 points) to 5 of 17 from the field. The Wolves held Portland to seven points over the last 3:56 and forced 19 turnovers.
Edwards found success attacking the rim in the second half as he went 5-for-6 from two-point range and just 2-for-7 from three-point range.
Towns had his way inside, Edwards found success driving to the hoop, the Wolves played good enough defense and Russell hit key shots down the stretch. This was the Wolves' winning formula before their five-game losing streak. With Russell back, they hope those days are behind them.
"Everybody was so uptight," Edwards said. "This win just made everybody take a deep breath, calm down. So now we good. I feel like we're back to ourselves."
The Wolves fell apart in the fourth quarter and have not won in Toronto in two decades.
