Edwards scores 26, Wolves hold on to beat Mavs 105-99 after Doncic injury

On By Littum

DALLAS (AP) – Anthony Edwards scored 26 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves held on for a 105-99 Christmas Day victory over Dallas after Mavericks superstar Luka Doncic left the game with a strained left calf.

A rematch of last season’s Western Conference finals won by Dallas fell flat when Doncic limped while making a play late in the second quarter on Wednesday. Then things got wild as the Mavs erased almost all of a 28-point deficit in the second half.

The five-time All-Star never made it back to the defensive end and limped off the field after Dallas called timeout. It was Doncic’s second game back after missing two with a left heel contusion.

Kyrie Irving scored 39 points but missed a 3-pointer that would have put the Mavs ahead in the final minute after they trailed by 28 late in the third quarter. Doncic scored 14 points.

Rudy Gobert had 14 points and 10 rebounds.

Takeaways

Timberwolves: Julius Randle played in Dallas against his hometown team for the first time since the blockbuster trade that brought him from the New York Knicks. He had 23 points, 10 rebounds and eight assists.

Mavericks: They finally shook off the malaise of the Doncic injury in the fourth quarter and cut a 28-point deficit late in the third quarter to two.

Key moment

Doncic pulled up lame changed everything. The five-time All-Star is the reason the Mavs played in their fifth consecutive Christmas game.

Key state

Timberwolves: Minnesota allowed an average of 121 points on 50% shooting during the three-game skid entering their third-ever Christmas game. The defense led to the big lead in Dallas.

Mavericks: Klay Thompson was 4 of 10 on 3s and passed Reggie Miller for fifth on the NBA’s career list. Thompson, who scored 12 points, has 2,562 to Miller’s 2,560.

Next

Minnesota at Houston Friday. Dallas at Phoenix on Friday.

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