Subscribe
Follow Us
Karl-Anthony Towns had perhaps the brightest game of his three-year career when his team needed him the most, dropping a career-high 56 points against the Atlanta Hawks on Wednesday night with enormous efficiency.
The Kentucky product took every chance to attack a woeful Hawks defense, hitting 19 of his 32 field goal attempts, along with 6-of-8 from deep, and 12-of-15 from the foul line in a 126-114 win in front of a packed Target Center.
“I just realized the ball kept coming to me more and more often,” Towns said, according to The Associated Press. “I guess that was a sign to shoot the ball. Everyone just kept telling me, ‘You need six more, you need eight more, for 50.' I wasn't really thinking about that. I was just trying to find a way to win.”
The Timberwolves have been forced to fight tooth and nail without star forward Jimmy Butler in the lineup, as the race between the fourth and eighth spot in the Western Conference is merely separated by two games' distance.
This win over the Hawks put the Wolves at 5-5 in their last 10 games, barely managing to hand on to the seventh seed with the trailing Utah Jazz only a half game away from catching up.
His teammate Andrew Wiggins did the most possible to help Towns find the ball early and often, then watched as every jumper fell through the net, as the seven-footer had his way all around the perimeter.
“You just start passing, sitting back and just watching,” Wiggins said. “Just watching the show.”
Despite Towns' pyrotechnics, the last six games of the season should prove utmost pivotal for Minnesota's playoff chances, likely needing more heroic performances from Towns and Wiggins if they are to hold on in a fierce race.
