Julius Randle will not let this game go to overtime.
Instead, the Minnesota Timberwolves forward sent Josh Okogie down to his back and drilled a buzzer beater that sent the Target Center into a frenzy.
Randle hit a perfect 3-pointer just as time expired Sunday afternoon to lift the Timberwolves to a 120-117 victory over the Phoenix Suns in Minneapolis. After catching an inbounds pass with less than three seconds left in the game, Randle outran Okogie — who crossed a bit above the arc and dropped back — and sank his stepback bucket before sprinting down to the opposite end. of the court.
He finished with a team-high 35 points and seven assists in the win. His final bucket was his fifth made 3-pointer of the afternoon. Randle is in his first season with the Timberwolves this fall after being dealt there in a deal that sent star Karl-Anthony Towns to the New York Knicks in October.
Randle, 29, is in the third year of a four-year, $117 million deal. He averaged 24 points and 9.2 rebounds last year with the Knicks earning his third All-Star nod and helping the team reach the Eastern Conference semifinals for a second straight season.
The Suns led almost all day on Sunday. They took a 10-point lead into the locker room at halftime, and then they mounted a long stretch where they held the Timberwolves without a made field goal for nearly four full minutes midway through the fourth quarter. But, after a four-point play by Randle that cut the game back to just five points, Minnesota finished the game on a 13-5 tear to capture the three-point victory.
Devin Booker led the Suns with 44 points, seven assists and six rebounds in the loss. He also went 6-of-13 from behind the arc. Grayson Allen added 18 points off the bench, and Tyus Jones finished with 13 points and 11 assists. The Suns are still without star Kevin Durant, who is out with a calf injury. Okogie started in place of Durant. The Suns are 9-5 on the season, although they have lost four of their last five games.
Anthony Edwards added 24 points in the win for the Timberwolves, who now sit at 8-6 on the season after their second straight win. Donte DiVincenzo also finished with 15 points off the bench. Sunday’s game was Minnesota’s only home game in a six-game stretch. The Timberwolves will head out to face the Toronto Raptors in Canada next Thursday.
