Timberwolves Beat Clippers 127-101 as Ball Scores 24 in First Win Since Edwards Injury

The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the visiting Los Angeles Clippers 127-101 on Friday, October 30, 2026, in Minneapolis in NBA Cup group play, their first win since losing Anthony Edwards to a knee injury. LaMelo Ball led Minnesota with 24 points and seven assists, and the Timberwolves controlled the game inside from the first quarter to the last.

Jaden McDaniels finished with 23 points, six rebounds and seven assists. Bones Hyland added 19 points off the bench. Three Minnesota players reached 19 points or more, and the scoring stayed spread across the lineup in a game Minnesota led by as many as 29 points.

Minnesota controls the paint and the game

Minnesota outscored Los Angeles 62-42 in the paint, a 20-point edge that set the shape of the night. The Timberwolves won the first quarter 34-24, led 69-56 at halftime, and kept the margin moving with a 29-25 third quarter and a 29-20 fourth. The full quarter line read Los Angeles 24, 32, 25 and 20, and Minnesota 34, 35, 29 and 29.

Minnesota never trailed by more than three points. The win snapped a two-game skid for the Timberwolves and improved their record to 4-2. In Cup group play, the 26-point margin also counts in the point difference column used for group tiebreaks.

Winning without Edwards

The result carries weight beyond one group game because of who was missing. It was Minnesota's first victory since the team lost star guard Anthony Edwards to a knee injury for the next two months. Ayo Dosunmu made his second straight start in Edwards' place and finished with 15 points and seven rebounds, and Minnesota covered the absence with balanced scoring rather than one replacement carrying the load. Ball and McDaniels each recorded seven assists to go with their scoring, and Hyland's 19 points off the bench gave Minnesota scoring depth behind its starters. Four Minnesota players reached 15 points or more, and the load was shared on a night when the team's star was watching.

Garland leads a struggling Clippers side

Darius Garland scored 24 points on 10 of 22 shooting to lead Los Angeles. The loss was the Clippers' fourth in a row, and it dropped Los Angeles to 1-4 on the season. Los Angeles stayed within reach at halftime, down 13, but Minnesota won both second-half quarters and the gap reached 29 before the finish.