Timberwolves fall to Pacers 132-130 in overtime to end eight-game winning streak

The Timberwolves' winning streak ended at eight games Monday night at Target Center with a 132-130 overtime loss to depleted Indiana.

The same team that hadn't lost since Feb. 28 finally succumbed to the Pacers and forward Obi Toppin, who made seven three-pointers, including the winner with 3.5 seconds left.

Toppin scored 34 points and was 7-for-10 on threes. Wolves All-Star Anthony Edwards scored 38 points but was 1-for-11 on his threes.

The loss came after the Wolves dispatched Utah at home on Sunday night for their eighth win in a row.

In Monday's back-to-back, they trailed an opponent missing four starters by 15 in the second quarter and then led by eight early in the fourth quarter but couldn't put the game away.

"They just played harder," Wolves guard Donte DiVincenzo said. "They had a lot of guys out, and they came out and competed. They had a chip on their shoulder and we didn't. We started playing when we were down [15 points]. That's no excuse."

In overtime, the Wolves led 126-123 with as little as 1:22 remaining, but the Pacers seemingly responded with three after three until they took a 129-128 lead with 26.6 seconds left.

The Wolves' eight consecutive victories was the longest active streak in the NBA. It was three shy of a franchise-record 11, won between mid-January and mid-February in 2001. It also was their longest since winning nine consecutive in March and April 2004, when Kevin Garnett, Sam Cassell and Latrell Sprewell led the Wolves to the Western Conference finals and Garnett won league MVP.

The Wolves arrived at Target Center on Monday with that eight-game winning streak, looking for nine consecutive against an injured Pacers team missing four starters and its biggest stars: Tyrese Haliburton, Pascal Siakam, Myles Turner and Aaron Nesmith.

Only starting shooting guard Andrew Nembhard remained standing, but he started and played out of position at point guard to fill Haliburton' absence.

The Wolves hadn't lost a game since doing so on Feb. 28 at Utah, when they lost without suspended Edwards and injured Rudy Gobert and Julius Randle.

Gobert didn't see Monday's game end after he was ejected along with Indiana's Nembhard.

"We walked into the game, back to back, we've done that before," Wolves guard Mike Conley said. "We have to be prepared for games like this. These guys are really good players. They don't always get the opportunity they did tonight, but they all can play and you have to respect that, when you don't respect the game, that's when guys like that get confident. They get good looks and they play regardless who they're playing against. They beat us and did all the things they needed to do."

The game turned contentious in the third quarter when both Nembhard and Gobert were ejected after Nembhard struck Conley aside the head as Nembhard drove by with the ball. Gobert responded by a hard shoulder block on Nembhard, who then threw the ball at Gobert's back.

Gobert received a Flagrant 2 foul, and Nembhard was called for his second technical foul of the night.

So both players went away into the night. That all came four minutes into the second half with the Pacers leading 66-58.

The entire sequence was reviewed by video before the punishments were handed out.

The game rolled and rollicked throughout the third quarter, with the lead exchanging hands several times. The Wolves led by five points with little more than five minutes left in the quarter to the Pacers leading by a bucket.

The Wolves took a 87-85 lead after three quarters.

The Wolves led 7-2 early but were tied 30-30 at first quarter's end and then outscored 30-16 in the second quarter alone even with those Pacers starters out and the Wolves with Randle, Donte DiVincenzo and Gobert all back from recent injuries and back in the rotation.