Wolves’ Karl-Anthony Towns scores 27 in return to action
Towns wound up 9-of-21 from the field with three 3-pointers.
“Having him out, we had to get through it,” teammate Andrew Wiggins said. “I’m glad to have him back and I’m not surprised he played so well. That’s what he does. He’s a natural-born hooper.”
Minnesota went 5-10 without Towns.
Towns made two free throws to tie the score Friday at 114. But he was just 4 of 12 from the field in the second half, missed all three of his fourth-quarter attempts and stepped out of bounds with 1:16 to play — wiping out what would have been the go-ahead 3-pointer.
Towns’ late turnover initiated a sequence of errors. With the score still tied, Wiggins missed a layup on a fast break with 55 seconds left and then stepped out of bounds for another turnover with 31 seconds to go, ultimately leading to the Pacers’ go-ahead bucket.
The Timberwolves were without guard Allen Crabbe, whom they reacquired from Atlanta. Saunders said Crabbe was expected to join the team Saturday in Minneapolis.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.