Timberwolves rout Clippers 127-101, end two-game skid before San Antonio trip

The Minnesota Timberwolves ended their first losing streak of the season the way they started it, by running a team off the floor. Minnesota beat the LA Clippers 127-101 at home, a 26-point win that moves the Wolves to 4-2 heading into Saturday's game in San Antonio.

The result, shown in ESPN's game highlights, followed two close losses. Minnesota fell 127-125 at Cleveland and then 119-114 at home to Golden State, two defeats by a combined seven points. Against the Clippers there was no late-game drama. The Wolves scored 127 or more for the third time in six games and held an opponent to 101 or fewer for the third time.

The win also puts the early-season pattern back in place. In their four wins, Minnesota has beaten Miami by 25, Orlando by 22, Toronto by 23 and now the Clippers by 26. Through six games the Wolves have scored 729 points and allowed 640, an average of 121.5 to 106.7. That is a margin of nearly 15 points a game, even with the two losses included. The split is even so far: 2-1 at Target Center and 2-1 on the road.

That profile matters more than the record. A team that loses by two and five and wins by more than 20 every other night is probably closer to its point differential than its win-loss mark, and Minnesota's differential is among the strongest a six-game sample can produce.

What it means for San Antonio

The Wolves go back on the road Saturday, October 31, to face the Spurs, with the game on NBA League Pass and the regional DAZN feeds. It will be Minnesota's fourth road game in seven, after a 2-1 trip that went from Miami to Orlando to Cleveland.

The market sees this game very differently from the season lines. San Antonio is heavily favored across the 12 venues on this site's board. Novig has the Spurs at -525 and Minnesota at +506. The best Spurs moneyline anywhere is BetRivers at -480, which returns $20.83 on $100, compared with $19.05 at Novig. On the spread, Novig lists San Antonio -12.5 at +102. BetRivers has the shortest number at -11.5, priced at -106.

That is a steep line against a team that has won four times by at least 22 points. The reporting reviewed for this story doesn't explain the gap, so Minnesota's availability report before tipoff is the thing to watch. A spread that size usually reflects more than form.

The total sits at 226.5 on Novig, with the over at -104 and the under at -102. Hard Rock Bet is a point higher at 227.5, with the under at -115. Minnesota's games have averaged about 228 combined points so far, close to where the venues have set the number. The sportsbooks are fairly tightly grouped, with hold between 3.9% and 5.6% on the moneyline and 3.0% to 4.9% on the spread. The widest gap on the board is the 45 cents of moneyline price between Novig and BetRivers on the Spurs side.

For Minnesota, the task is the same as it was against the Clippers: turn a strong point differential into wins, this time in a building where the market gives the Wolves little chance.