MINNEAPOLIS—It was going to be a difficult back-to-back, a grind of a game against a good opponent one night, a meeting with an athletic, rested young group the next.
Too difficult, as it turned out.
Despite an impressive fourth-quarter rally, the Raptors couldn’t close out the game and were beaten 115-109 by the short-staffed Minnesota Timberwolves at the Target Center.
It was Minnesota’s ninth straight win at home as they continue to live among the top teams in the Western Conference.
Kyle Lowry had a season-high 40 points and single-handedly kept the Raptors close before they rallied from a 10-point deficit to take a one-point lead with just under four minutes remaining.