Timberwolves bounce back after brawl, pull away from Pistons

Kent Youngblood, The Minnesota Star Tribune on Mar 30, 2025

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MINNEAPOLIS — With 8:36 left in the first half of the Timberwolves’ game with Detroit on Sunday night at Target Center, in a game that was a physical battle from the opening tip, all heck broke loose.

Down 10, Wolves forward Naz Reid was fouled by Ron Holland II. Holland and Reid started talking. Perhaps due to lingering feelings from a play moments earlier, when the Wolves’ Donte DiVincenzo and Pistons’ Isaiah Stewart got into it, DiVincenzo got in between Reid and Holland.

And it was on.

By the way: The Wolves came back and won, pulling away for a 123-104 victory.

It was an important victory. But of all the things that happened Sunday, the second-quarter melee was the most riveting, likely the most suspension-inducing and certainly the most consequential thing to happen.

The fight spilled into the front row under the east basket at Target Center, shaking up a young fan.

Players, coaches, seemingly everyone was involved. The crowd roared, the Wolves players rallied around assistant coach Pablo Prigioni, who was about to join the procession off the court.

It would be a costly few moments.

When the dust cleared, after extensive review: Detroit’s Stewart, Holland, Marcus Sasser and head coach J.B. Bickerstaff were ejected. DiVincenzo and Reid — two of the Wolves’ best 3-point shooters — and Prigioni joined them.

Tone. Setter.

With the playoffs nearing, even with resurgent Detroit missing two of hits best scorers from the get-go, it should be comforting to fans that, after the tête-à-tête, the Wolves more than went toe-to-toe.

It took a few moments, but the Wolves responded, big-time, led by a marvelous game from Julius Randle, and a second half for the ages by Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert.

Down 14 with 4:04 left in the second quarter, the Wolves out-scored the Pistons 51-28 from that point to the end of the third, taking a nine-point lead into the final 12 minutes.

Game.

Randle finished with 26 points to go along with eight rebounds. Edwards scored 20 of his 25 points in the third quarter. Gobert scored 19 points with a season-high 25 rebounds. Mike Conley added 17.

Even without DiVincenzo and Reid, the Wolves got 34 points off the bench, led by 11 points from Nickeil Alexander-Walker. After a slow start, the Wolves finished the game ferociously.

Talk about responding.

Detroit got 25 points from former Wolves player Malik Beasley, who hit six 3-pointers; after many of his early treys he taunted anyone in sight. Tim Hardaway Jr. scored 20. All five Detroit starters were in double figures.

But it was the Wolves who finished this one.

After all the technical and ejections had been handed out, Conley hit a technical free throw. Luka Garza hit both free throws in place of the ejected Reid.

After a Detroit miss, Conley drove for a score and suddenly it was a five-point game.

But, with Beasley hitting two 3-pointers, that lead grew back to 14 on Dennis Schroder’s two free throws with 4:04 left in the half.

Finally, the Wolves responded.

Randle scored the first five and the last two points in a 13-5 Wolves run to end the half, pulling them within 60-54.

Edwards scored four in the run, including a driving dunk that was his first field goal of the game.

And it didn’t end then. When Randle hit a 3 with 7:49 left in the third quarter the Wolves, on a 31-14 run, had a 72-69 lead. By the time third quarter had ended Minnesota had outscored the Pistons 38-23.

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