Timberwolves beat 76ers 121-111 in exhibition game in Des Moines

Anthony Edwards finished with 16 points in his preseason debut, Naz Reid scored 19 points and the Timberwolves improved to 2-0 in exhibition play by beating Philadelphia 121-111 in Des Moines on Friday night.

Jaden McDaniels scored 17 points on 6-for-8 shooting, and former University of Iowa standout Luka Garza added 14 points on 5-for-7 shooting in 17 minutes for the Wolves, who played the 76ers at Wells Fargo Arena, home of the Iowa Wolves.

Edwards did not play in the Wolves’ first preseason game last week against the Los Angeles Lakers in Palm Desert, Calif. Friday, he played 23 minutes, 37 seconds, shooting 7-for-14 from the floor while adding four rebounds and three assists.

The Wolves, who did not play either Rudy Gobert or newly acquired Julius Randle, led 30-22 after one quarter and 70-53 at halftime, shooting 49.4% from the floor while making 18 three-pointers on 50 attempts. Gobert did not make the trip to Iowa.

BOXSCORE: Timberwolves 121, 76ers 111

Paul George, nine-time All-Star who played the past five seasons for the Los Angeles Clippers, made his debut for the 76ers, who acquired him in the offseason on a four-year, $212 million contact. George, who is joining his fourth NBA team, led all scorers with 23 points, and Tyrese Maxey added 21.

Philadelphia center Joel Embiid did not travel with the team, staying behind for an assessment of his surgically repaired knee.

The game was a homecoming for 76ers coach Nick Nurse, who was born and raised in Carroll, Iowa, and played in college at Northern Iowa. In 1991, Nurse became a head coach at age 23 at NAIA member Grand View University in Des Moines and also coached the Iowa Energy for four seasons.

“It doesn’t come around very often that you get to bring an NBA team back to your old stomping grounds like this,” Nurse told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “… I’m excited to be here.”