Canaan helps Suns rally to beat T-Wolves
Published 11:34 am Sunday, December 17, 2017
MINNEAPOLIS — Isaiah Canaan hit three free throws with 6 seconds to play in his first game with Phoenix and the Suns rallied to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 108-106 on Saturday night.
Added to the roster this week after the injury-ravaged Suns received a hardship extension, Canaan finished with 15 points and drew a foul on Jeff Teague on a 3-pointer with Minnesota leading by one. Originally ruled a shot-clock violation, reply officials overturned the call and Canaan calmly sank all three shots amid a loud crowd of neon green-clad fans.
Alex Len blocked Jimmy Butler’s layup attempt out of bounds on the ensuring possession. Butler had one more look from the corner, but the attempt rimmed out and the Suns snapped their five-game losing streak.
Dragan Bender and Troy Daniels each scored 17 points for the Suns, whose bench outscored the starters 69-39. T.J. Warren added 15 points for Phoenix, which trailed by as many as 15.
Karl-Anthony Towns led Minnesota with 28 points and 11 rebounds. Phoenix had 27 turnovers, but the Wolves struggled from the floor, finishing 40 for 95.
The Wolves took a four-point lead into the fourth before Danuel House converted a three-point play to spark a 22-11 run. Len had 12 points and a career-high 19 rebounds. Len’s put back at 7:49 gave the Suns their first lead at 92-91.
TIP INS
Suns: C Tyson Chandler returned to the starting lineup after missing Thursday night’s loss against Toronto. … Tyler Ulis left with an apparent hand injury with less than three minutes in the game.
Timberwolves: Towns recorded his league-leading 24th double-double of the season. … Before the game, coach Tom Thibodeau addressed G Jamal Crawford’s recent comments about his limited playing time, saying. Crawford entered the game averaging 17.7 minutes, the lowest since his rookie season. On Friday, he told reporters it was challenging to adjust to the change. “I think everyone has to sacrifice for the team and if you look at Jimmy, Wig and KAT, they are sacrificing some shot attempts. You have to do what’s best for the team,” Thibodeau said Saturday. … F Nemanja Bjelica missed his 12th straight game with a sprained left foot.