MINNEAPOLIS — Kevin Martin scored 21 points in his first game in more than two months and Gorgui Dieng added 16 points and 14 rebounds to lift the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 110-98 victory over the Boston Celtics on Wednesday night.
Zach LaVine added 17 points and six assists and Martin scored nine straight points during a crucial stretch of the fourth quarter to help the Timberwolves (8-37) snap a 10-game losing streak at Target Center.
Jared Sullinger had 16 points and eight rebounds and Marcus Thornton scored 15 for the Celtics, whose promising road trip came to an end with a thud.
The Wolves had not won at home since beating Portland on Dec. 10.
Martin had been out since Nov. 21 with a fractured right wrist that required surgery. He came off the bench in his first game back, hit the first jumper he took and kept right on shooting. He made 7 of 18 in 28 minute, hit two 3-pointers and converted a three-point play midway through the fourth that turned a four-point lead into a 13-point advantage.
Thaddeus Young added 12 points and nine rebounds and Nikola Pekovic scored 14 points for the Wolves, who were missing Mo Williams for personal reasons.
The Celtics were playing the final game of a six-game road trip that started on Jan. 19. They missed the big snowstorm back home, and showed some growth with victories over Portland, Denver and Utah. But they didn’t have the legs to finish the trip on a high note. LaVine had all sorts of trouble with Avery Bradley’s dogged defense in the first half, but he got going with a couple of dunks and scored 13 points in the third quarter to help the Timberwolves build a 13-point lead.
The smaller Celtics couldn’t handle Minnesota’s size up front. Dieng dominated the glass and Pekovic demanded double teams every time he touched the ball, which opened up the rest of the offense.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
