On Monday night in Houston, Minnesota Timberwolves' forward Michael Beasley found himself in a bit of an unfamiliar role. . .coming off of the bench. If tonight's results are any indication, that might not be the worst thing Rick Adelman could do.
Beasley led the Wolves in scoring on Monday night, pouring in 34 points while hitting 10-of-14 shots from the field and going a perfect 12-of-12 from the line in Minnesota's 120-108 victory over the Houston Rockets at the Toyota Center. The victory marked just the second time the Timberwolves have beaten the Rockets in their last 18 meetings.
The 120 points is a high scoring mark on this season for the Timberwolves, eclipsing the 106 they put up in a victory over the San Antonio Spurs on January 2.
Minnesota trailed going into halftime of this one by a score of 56-54, but started the second half on a 12-4 run to give themselves a 66-60 lead. After the Rockets fought back to tie the game at 68, the Timberwolves went on a 19-6 run, and were really never threatened after that point.
In addition to Beasley's big night, Kevin Love chipped in with 29 points and seven rebounds. Ricky Rubio did what Ricky Rubio does, coming up just short of a triple-double by putting up 18 points, 11 assists, and eight rebounds. The Rockets were paced by guard Kevin Martin, who scored 29 points. He didn't get much support, however, as none of his teammates scored more than 13.
Minnesota's victory in coach Rick Adelman's return to Houston once again puts them within one game of the .500 mark at 10-11. They also collected their fifth road victory of the season, matching the total that they've put up in each of the past two seasons in just nine games.
Minnesota will once again try to get to that elusive .500 mark on Wednesday, when they return to the Target Center to host the Indiana Pacers.