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Timberwolves waxed by Pacers for third loss in four games

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Timberwolves waxed by Pacers for third loss in four games


That eight-game winning streak now feels like decades ago.

The team Minnesota has been over the past week looks nothing like a crew that could reel off so many wins in succession, or contend for anything of consequence in the playoffs, should it even get there.

No, the panic meter needle shouldn’t tilt that far to the right at this point, but Minnesota’s 119-103 loss to the Pacers in Indiana raised some major red flags.

The Timberwolves’ typically potent defense was rendered irrelevant by Indiana’s pace. The Pacers played with a pace and rhythm in the transition and halfcourt that didn’t allow Minnesota to sink its teeth in physically and bother Indiana in any way. The Pacers shot 48% from the field, with 30 assists on their 46 buckets.

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Frankly, it was Indiana’s defensive physicality — something for which the Pacers are not traditionally known — that bothered Minnesota.

The Wolves committed 17 turnovers while shooting 27% from distance.

“It was kind of a funky, off performance all around,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch told reporters.

Anthony Edwards was a gametime decision with a hand laceration. He played, but not well. The guard, who was piping hot from beyond the arc for the first half of the season, has not been since the calendar flipped to February. That trend continued Monday, as the guard went 1 for 11 from 3-point range.

Minnesota was outscored by 24 points in Edwards’ 34 minutes. The next worst plus-minus on the team belonged to Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who was a minus-13.

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Edwards settled for threes on a night where he was successful inside the arc, going 6 for 8 on two-point attempts. That was the story of the game for Minnesota, who settled for a number of bad shot attempts against a defense that it traditionally could pick its attempt against.

“I thought we could’ve gone to the hoop a lot more than we did. They were pretty physical on the ball and we needed to with the ball and at the point of attack offensively, and we were never able to do that,” Finch said. “We didn’t have any composure. We were wild tonight offensively, whether that was wild with the ball or wild with our shot selection. Every time we had a chance to tighten up the game, or did tighten up the game, we’d get a stop, come down, take kind of a rushed three in transition.”

Minnesota fell to Indiana’s skeleton squad last week in overtime at Target Center, a night in which Obi Toppin had 34 points while shooting 7 for 10 from distance. Indiana was near full strength Monday, but it was still the same Toppin. The forward buried six triples in the win. But he had more help this time around. Indiana star guard Tyrese Haliburton had 24 points and 11 assists.

Whatever Indiana wanted to do, it did with relative ease.

“I think our offense is bothering our defense a little bit too much,” Finch said. “That’s something that’s reared it’s head at times for us. We’ve got to get back to guarding at a high level like we were doing.”

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The Wolves have now lost three of four games. And while the fight for a top-six seed to avoid the play-in tournament rages on — Minnesota, currently in eighth in the West, is a full game back of Golden State for the No. 6 seed, and two back in the loss column — the Wolves are torpedoing their chances with their current run of poor play.

Bennedict Mathurin #00 of the Indiana Pacers and Naz Reid #11 of the Minnesota Timberwolves confront each other during an altercation in the first quarter at Gainbridge Fieldhouse on March 24, 2025 in Indianapolis, Indiana. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Dylan Buell/Getty Images)



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2 Minneapolis firefighters suffer burns in apartment building blaze, officials say

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2 Minneapolis firefighters suffer burns in apartment building blaze, officials say



Two Minneapolis firefighters are being treated for minor burns suffered while battling a blaze Thursday morning at a three-story residential building.

The Minneapolis Fire Department announced on social media just before 8 a.m. that crews are gathered off East 24th Street and Elliot Avenue, about a block north of Children’s Minnesota hospital in the Phillips community.

“All residents are reported to be evacuated,” officials said.

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In addition to the two injured firefighters, officials say a third firefighter is also “being medically evaluated for overheating.”

This is a developing story. Stay with WCCO for the latest information.



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Couch: 3 quick takes on Michigan State basketball’s 76-73 loss at Minnesota

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Couch: 3 quick takes on Michigan State basketball’s 76-73 loss at Minnesota


1. MSU nearly got away with a regrettable performance for most of the night at Minnesota

MINNEAPOLIS — If only the Spartans had played the first 38 minutes with the tenacity and purpose they played the last two. There’s a lesson in there. One Michigan State’s basketball team probably shouldn’t have had to learn.

For most of Wednesday night, MSU experienced the other side of a feel-good home game in a 76-73 defeat. And the Spartans didn’t have the goods most of the night to prevent it.

Minnesota, which entered the game shooting less than 33% from beyond the arc, made 10 of 21 3s — which felt like 19 of 21. And the Gophers, who had been collapsing late in games, built enough of a margin — 67-51 with four minutes left and still 69-60 before a Jordan Scott 3 with 59 seconds left — to hang on for the biggest win at The Barn in a long time.

The Gophers might have held on by the skin of their teeth, but the students rushing the court and the elation by Minnesota’s players explained how big this was. And for MSU, it was the first bad loss of the season. Not an unexplainable defeat or an entirely unexpected one. But one a lot of other teams that are near the top of the Big Ten standings and pushing for top seeds in the NCAA tournament won’t have.

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At halftime, MSU’s core four — Jeremy Fears Jr., Coen Carr, Jaxon Kohler and Carson Cooper — had a combined four points on 2-for-14 shooting. MSU was in a funk most of the night and didn’t have answers on either end.

If college basketball games were 41 minutes instead of 40, the Spartans might have gotten away with it. Instead, they lost their second straight and lost one that really hurts their chances of staying in the Big Ten title race. They’ve got to get their mojo back from the start Saturday against Illinois.

2. Jordan Scott’s starting debut shows why he’s starting

MSU doesn’t want Jordan Scott to be its leading scorer yet, I don’t think. Not unless he becomes a 15-point-per-game guy every night. But he wasn’t the reason the Spartans lost Wednesday night, even if his performance in his first career start had some ups and downs. He got outmuscled and beaten defensively a few times on the block and turned it over twice. Teams are gong to attack him physically, if they have the personnel on the wing to do it. He’s got to be ready for that and his teammates have to be ready to help.

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But Scott also made some shots — and did so on a night not a lot of other guys were making them and when none of Spartans’ core guys were making much. He hit a step-in jumper on MSU’s first possession and three 3s — one a huge shot from the left side to pull MSU to within 38-30, before he nearly came up with a steal seconds later, diving out of bounds, and another with a minute left as MSU tried to make a furious comeback. The 3 he missed would a been a big one, too. He finished with 15 points, on 5-for-8 shooting, with a couple rebounds, an assist and two steals. He was 2-for-4 from the free-throw line. He’s got to get better there. MSU’s problem was that Scott’s points were a team-high most of the night, until a flurry by Coen Carr in the final few minutes.

This was a forgettable night in a lot of ways for the Spartans. But Scott gave what MSU should need from him offensively. I don’t think he’s ready yet to do more.

A good first night off the bench for Ugochukwu. Losing him hurt.

This looked like an ideal first night back coming off the bench for Divine Ugochucku. Then, with about 7 minutes until halftime, Ugochukwu suffered some sort of foot or leg injury, subbing himself after a defensive possession.

It was a blow for MSU for a couple reasons. One, he’s the backup point guard again, and has been more often of late, even when he was still the starting shooting guard. Secondly, he was playing really well Wednesday, making a difference on both ends during the eight minutes he was on the court.

Not everybody responds well to moving to the bench after spending a good chunk of the season in the starting lineup. Ugochukwu played with an energy as if he was trying to make a point, that he’s still a factor. And he was.

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I also thought the coaching staff handled it well early. These guys aren’t robots. You want to make sure a guy like Ugochukwu understands quickly that he still has value. Tom Izzo used a couple clunky possessions out of the gate as a reason to pull Jeremy Fears aside for a minute. Enter Ugochukwu, who produced some needed offense attacking the rim, his second such scoring drive with MSU trailing 12-3. He stayed in the game when Fears returned and saved a turnover soon after and had a couple of rebounds, after which he pushed the ball up the court. He was good.

Then it was done suddenly. He went to the locker room for a while, before returning to the bench in the second half, but didn’t play again. MSU needs him. We’ve seen in a few times this season. He’s not one of the four most important players on the Spartans. Probably not even fifth. But he’s not far behind. Not having him for any length of time would leave a mark.

Contact Graham Couch at gcouch@lsj.com. Follow him on X @Graham_Couch and BlueSky @Graham_Couch.



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White House border czar says 700 federal agents will leave Minnesota

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White House border czar says 700 federal agents will leave Minnesota


Tom Homan, the White House border czar, said about 700 federal agents would leave Minnesota, a large drop in agents on the ground but still leaving about 2,000 agents there, far above typical levels for the state.

Homan said the reduction came as county jails were negotiating over increased coordination with federal officials, though it’s not clear which counties have agreed to coordinate with immigration enforcement officials.

The Minnesota Star Tribune reported that Minnesota sheriffs are negotiating with Homan for a plan that would see county jails holding immigrants for up to 48 hours after their release date from state custody. Homan said Wednesday that agreements wouldn’t keep people in custody for any longer than their set sentences.

Sheriffs who agree to participate would notify immigration enforcement agents before they’re released, and agents would be able to pick the person up from a jail, reducing the need for street operations that require more agents, Homan said.

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At a press conference on Tuesday, Tim Walz said he had met with Homan that morning. The Minnesota governor said his expectation was that Homan would draw down the number of agents in the state and give the state the ability to investigate the killings of two US citizens by federal agents. Walz said he wanted a return to lower numbers of agents, the about 100-150 who regularly work in the state, working solely on those with violent convictions.

Walz said it’s not that the federal government has had a change of heart; it’s that they know they’re losing politically.

“I don’t see how they continue on with this in any way that makes any sense, both politically and operationally for them,” he said. Still, he’s looking for more than rhetoric from the administration. “None of this matters unless there’s proof on the ground.”



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