By DAVE CAMPBELL AP Sports Writer
MINNEAPOLIS — James Harden and the short-handed Clippers have been doing their best to hang in a loaded Western Conference, but some nights the absence of the sidelined talent appears more glaring.
Two-time NBA Finals MVP Kawhi Leonard (knee) has yet to play this season, and starting guard Norman Powell (hamstring) missed his sixth straight game Friday night. The Clippers could have used at least one of them as they came up short in a 93-92 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in an NBA Cup Group Play game.
Anthony Edwards scored 21 points on 7-for-21 shooting to lead Minnesota (9-10), which snapped its four-game losing streak. Nickeil Alexander-Walker had 12 points and 10 rebounds and Julius Randle added 11 points and 10 rebounds for the Timberwolves, who overcame 22 turnovers and another blown double-digit lead.
Harden had 20 points and 11 assists and Ivica Zubac added 16 points and 13 rebounds for the Clippers (12-9), who went ahead 90-87 with 4:10 left on Harden’s four-point play for their first lead since 27-26.
Edwards hit a pull-up 3-pointer with 2:24 to go for a 92-90 lead, and the Clippers made only one basket, a layup by Zubac, over the final four minutes.
Kevin Porter Jr., who had 17 points and seven rebounds for the Clippers, rolled his left ankle on a drive to the basket with 1:29 left as he lost the ball out of bounds with his team trailing by three.
Down by one with 26 seconds left, the Clippers turned the ball over again and never got it back. Mike Conley stole the ball from Kris Dunn, then missed a 3-point attempt with five seconds left, and Edwards missed a tip-in attempt but Rudy Gobert grabbed the rebound with 1.2 seconds left to secure the win for Minnesota.
The Timberwolves finished 2-2 in West Group A. The Clippers are 1-2 with one group stage game left. Both teams are long shots to reach the quarterfinals of the in-season tournament.
The Timberwolves saw their 11-point second-quarter lead evaporate in the type of funk that has troubled this team since reaching the conference finals last season, be it from a lack of intensity on defense, a stoppage of movement on offense, or both. With three straight turnovers to start the second half, the Timberwolves found themselves in a tie game soon after.
The Clippers host Denver on Sunday at 7 p.m.
