Houston Rockets (43-28, sixth in the Western Conference) vs. Minnesota Timberwolves (44-28, fifth in the Western Conference)
Minneapolis; Wednesday, 9:30 p.m. EDT
BOTTOM LINE: Houston visits the Minnesota Timberwolves after Kevin Durant scored 40 points in the Rockets’ 132-124 loss to the Chicago Bulls.
The Timberwolves have gone 27-21 against Western Conference teams. Minnesota has a 5-4 record in games decided by less than 4 points.
The Rockets are 23-21 in conference play. Houston is fourth in the league giving up only 110.2 points while holding opponents to 46.1% shooting.
The Timberwolves make 48.4% of their shots from the field this season, which is 2.3 percentage points higher than the Rockets have allowed to their opponents (46.1%). The Rockets average 114.2 points per game, 0.3 fewer than the 114.5 the Timberwolves give up to opponents.
The teams meet for the second time this season. The Rockets won 110-105 in the last matchup on Jan. 17.
TOP PERFORMERS: Julius Randle is averaging 21 points, 6.8 rebounds and 5.1 assists for the Timberwolves. Ayo Dosunmu is averaging 13.5 points and 3.3 assists over the past 10 games.
Durant is averaging 25.9 points, 5.5 rebounds and 4.4 assists for the Rockets. Amen Thompson is averaging 21.7 points, 8.5 rebounds and 4.9 assists over the past 10 games.
LAST 10 GAMES: Timberwolves: 5-5, averaging 114.0 points, 43.4 rebounds, 25.0 assists, 8.1 steals and 5.4 blocks per game while shooting 48.3% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 114.7 points per game.
Rockets: 5-5, averaging 111.1 points, 44.7 rebounds, 25.9 assists, 8.0 steals and 5.1 blocks per game while shooting 49.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.0 points.
INJURIES: Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards: out (knee).
Rockets: Fred VanVleet: out for season (acl), Steven Adams: out for season (ankle).
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The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.