When the Boston Celtics play the Minnesota Timberwolves on Wednesday night in Minneapolis, the third game of a six-game road trip, they will try to avoid suffering consecutive defeats.
Five of Boston’s last eight games have ended in defeat. That includes a humiliating loss to Houston on Monday by a score of 111 to 109. The Rockets are out of the playoff picture and in last place in the Western Conference.
The Celtics lost by 43 points thanks to 43 points from Jaylen Brown. Boston made 12 of 42 attempts (28.6%) from three-point range.
In the loss on Monday, Jayson Tatum scored 22 points, but he was 3-for-12 from the field in the first half, missing six of his seven attempts at a 3-pointer. He had a team-high six assists and eight rebounds for the Celtics.
Boston’s top scorers are Tatum (30.3 points per game) and Brown (26.6).
During the Timberwolves’ 136-115 victory over Atlanta on Monday, Anthony Edwards scored 32 points. With the victory, Minnesota ended its two-game losing streak.
Minnesota pulled away thanks to two 3-pointers made by Edwards late in the fourth quarter. He leads the Timberwolves in scoring (24.9 points per game) and steals (1.7 per game) and has scored at least 30 points in each of his last three games.
In the third period, Minnesota’s Kyle Anderson scored 12 of his 14 points. He also had 10 rebounds and 12 assists. His career-high triple-double was his third.
The Celtics and Timberwolves will play their second game of the season on Wednesday. When Boston defeated Minnesota 121-109 at home on December 23, Brown scored 23 of his game-high 36 points in the fourth quarter. Edwards was Minnesota’s driving scorer in that game with 30 places.
For the sixth game in a row, Boston will be without center Robert Williams III because of a hamstring injury. Payton Pritchard (heel), a guard, will miss his fourth consecutive game.
Minnesota is without center Rudy Gobert (ankle), big man Naz Reid (calf), and guard Austin Rivers (back).
