Minnesota Timberwolves 115, Orlando Magic 93

The Minnesota Timberwolves shot slightly worse than the Orlando Magic on Friday night and still won by 22. They did it by taking 14 more shots from the field. Minnesota out-rebounded Orlando 61-43, forced 16 turnovers against 12 of its own, and watched the Magic go 8-of-39 from three. The Wolves won 115-93 at Kia Center to move to 2-0, and Orlando never held a lead.

The full price history is on the game page.

How it was won

Minnesota led from the first quarter on. It took a 26-20 lead after one and pushed it to 57-45 at the half behind a 31-point second quarter.

The third quarter settled it. The Wolves outscored Orlando 29-15 and led 86-60 going into the fourth, a 26-point margin that matched their largest lead of the night. Orlando won the fourth 33-29, which closed the gap but never threatened the result.

The box score explains the margin better than the shooting percentages do. Minnesota shot 42-of-98 (43 percent); Orlando shot 37-of-84 (44 percent). The difference was volume. Eighteen extra rebounds and four fewer turnovers gave the Wolves far more possessions, and they used them to assist on 33 of their 42 baskets, against 23 assists for Orlando.

The three-point line widened the gap. Minnesota went 14-of-37, Orlando 8-of-39. That is 18 points of separation from deep in a game decided by 22.

Orlando did win the paint, 54-46, and the Wolves left points at the line, going 17-of-30 on free throws. Neither mattered much against the rebounding and the Magic's perimeter shooting.

The scoring was spread out. Jaden McDaniels and Anthony Edwards each had 15 points. McDaniels added 6 rebounds and 3 assists and went 2-of-5 from three. Edwards had 4 rebounds and 4 assists but was 2-of-9 from deep. Rudy Gobert added 14 points and 9 rebounds.

For Orlando, Wendell Carter Jr. led with 20 points and 9 rebounds and hit 3 of his 4 threes. Franz Wagner had 18 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists but went 1-of-6 from three. Paolo Banchero added 14 points, 6 rebounds and 5 assists. Outside of Carter, the Magic went 5-of-35 from beyond the arc.

Against the number

Orlando closed as a 1.5-point favorite, so Minnesota covered as the underdog by 23.5 points. Wolves backers on the moneyline got plus odds at +102; the Magic closed at -122.

The total closed at 234.5, and 208 points went in. The under cleared by 26.5. Orlando's 8-of-39 shooting from three and Minnesota's 17-of-30 at the line did most of the work there. Even a 33-29 fourth quarter, the highest-scoring period of the night, came nowhere near closing the gap.

The market had this as close to a coin flip with a slight lean to the home side. It finished as one of the more lopsided results against the number in the opening week.

What's next

Minnesota has played twice since. It beat the Toronto Raptors 117-94 at home, then lost 127-125 at the Cleveland Cavaliers, and sits at 3-1. The Wolves host the Golden State Warriors on Wednesday, October 28, on NBA League Pass.

Orlando fell to 0-2 with the loss. Check its team page for its upcoming schedule and odds.