Naz Reid's Late 3 Caps 18-Point Comeback as Timberwolves Edge Clippers 109-106

MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. — With the game tied and the clock running down, Anthony Edwards had a chance to take the big shot himself. Instead he found Naz Reid alone in the corner. Reid buried a 3-pointer with 13 seconds left, and the Minnesota Timberwolves completed an 18-point comeback to beat the LA Clippers 109-106 on Saturday night at Target Center.

Jaden McDaniels scored 27 points and sealed it at the free-throw line, and the Timberwolves won their fifth straight game, a season high, to improve to 15-8. The Clippers fell to 6-18 and have lost seven of their last eight, according to the Associated Press.

Harden Sets the Early Tone

For most of the first half, this was James Harden's game. The Clippers guard scored 19 points before halftime, the AP reported, and Los Angeles won the first quarter 34-22, according to the Basketball Reference box score. Minnesota went 2 of 10 from 3-point range in the first half and trailed 56-42 at the break.

Harden finished with 34 points, five rebounds and six assists. Along the way he moved into 10th place on the NBA's career scoring list, passing Carmelo Anthony (28,289 points) with a pair of free throws in the third quarter, the AP reported.

Kawhi Leonard added 20 points, and Ivica Zubac had 15 points and 13 rebounds. Minnesota fell behind by as many as 18 before the comeback took shape.

McDaniels Leads the Charge

McDaniels turned the game in the third quarter. He scored 12 of his 27 points in the period, according to On SI, and finished 10 of 13 from the field and 3 of 3 from 3-point range. Minnesota won the third quarter 30-22 and cut the deficit to 78-72 heading into the fourth.

The Wolves kept coming. A 21-12 run gave them a 102-93 lead with 3:56 to play, On SI reported. Then the Clippers answered with nine straight points to tie it at 102, according to the play-by-play. Mike Conley's free throws put Minnesota back in front, and Bogdan Bogdanović tied it again at 104 with a jumper with 31 seconds left.

The Winning Possession

On the next trip, McDaniels missed a midrange shot, but Minnesota grabbed the offensive rebound and swung the ball. Edwards passed up his own look and found Reid in the corner, and Reid knocked down the go-ahead 3 with 13 seconds to go.

"Just a bunch of effort plays," Reid said of the winning sequence in a postgame interview with FanDuel Sports North, according to On SI. He added that when the team's hustle and intensity plays are going its way, it is hard to beat, the outlet reported.

McDaniels made two free throws with 4.8 seconds left to push the lead to three, and Harden's potential tying 3-pointer at the buzzer missed.

By the Numbers

Reid finished with 19 points off the bench, going 5 of 8 from 3-point range, and grabbed nine rebounds. Julius Randle scored 24 points with six assists. Edwards had 15 points on 3-of-11 shooting, according to On SI, along with six rebounds and four assists.

For Los Angeles, John Collins scored 12 points and Kris Dunn had eight points, six rebounds and four assists, according to the box score. The Clippers went 9 of 29 from 3-point range and committed 11 turnovers. Jaylen Clark added eight points for Minnesota, and Conley and Donte DiVincenzo had five apiece.

Minnesota outscored Los Angeles 67-50 in the second half, including 37-28 in the fourth quarter, and finished 11 of 25 from deep. The Timberwolves shot 50 percent from the field overall, 34 of 68, while the Clippers shot 47.1 percent, according to Basketball Reference. A crowd of 17,506 was on hand.

It was not a clean night for Minnesota. Rudy Gobert was called for a flagrant foul after landing under Harden on a 3-point attempt, and the Wolves committed 14 turnovers. They found a way anyway.

The Clippers were set to finish their road trip Thursday at Houston, while the Timberwolves stayed home to host the Phoenix Suns. For Minnesota, five straight wins and a 15-8 record suggest a team that is starting to trust itself in tight games, and Reid's corner 3 was the latest proof.

Photo Credit: Abbigail Worlow/Undrafted