Los Angeles Lakers (17-15, eighth in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (23-7, first in the Western Conference)
Minneapolis; Saturday, 8 p.m. EST
BOTTOM LINE: Minnesota hosts the Los Angeles Lakers after Anthony Edwards scored 44 points in the Minnesota Timberwolves' 118-110 victory over the Dallas Mavericks.
The Timberwolves have gone 16-4 against Western Conference teams. Minnesota is third in the Western Conference with 34.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Rudy Gobert averaging 8.4.
The Lakers are 13-9 in conference matchups. Los Angeles ranks fifth in the NBA scoring 54.5 points per game in the paint led by Anthony Davis averaging 16.8.
The Timberwolves average 12.1 made 3-pointers per game this season, 1.9 fewer makes per game than the Lakers give up (14.0). The Lakers score 7.3 more points per game (114.7) than the Timberwolves give up (107.4).
The two teams match up for the second time this season. The Timberwolves defeated the Lakers 118-111 in their last meeting on Dec. 22. Edwards led the Timberwolves with 27 points, and Davis led the Lakers with 31 points.
TOP PERFORMERS: Edwards is scoring 25.9 points per game with 5.5 rebounds and 5.3 assists for the Timberwolves. Karl-Anthony Towns is averaging 19.0 points and 8.9 rebounds while shooting 50.4% over the past 10 games for Minnesota.
LeBron James is scoring 24.9 points per game and averaging 7.7 rebounds for the Lakers. Taurean Prince is averaging 3.5 made 3-pointers over the last 10 games for Los Angeles.
LAST 10 GAMES: Timberwolves: 7-3, averaging 115.7 points, 42.1 rebounds, 27.6 assists, 8.1 steals and 5.3 blocks per game while shooting 49.7% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 111.7 points per game.
Lakers: 4-6, averaging 120.0 points, 43.6 rebounds, 30.7 assists, 7.3 steals and 4.8 blocks per game while shooting 50.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 117.8 points.
INJURIES: Timberwolves: Jaylen Clark: out (achilles).
Lakers: Gabe Vincent: out (knee), Cam Reddish: out (groin).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.
The Associated Press
