NBA: Karl Anthony-Towns leads Timberwolves past Kings

Karl-Anthony Towns had 30 points and 14 assists in his league-leading 23rd double-double, Jimmy Butler added 21 points and nine assists and the Minnesota Timberwolves cruised to a 119-96 victory over the Sacramento Kings on Thursday night.

Andrew Wiggins scored 22 points for Minnesota (17-12), which has won three of four and is off to the third-best start in franchise history after 29 games.

Zach Randolph had 15 points and nine rebounds for Sacramento. George Hill scored 16 points for the Kings, who lost rookie point guard DeAaron Fox to an injury in the first quarter.

Kosta Koufos had 11 points and eight rebounds off the bench.

Towns blamed himself for Tuesday’s overtime loss to Philadelphia and then got into a back-and-forth with 76ers center Joel Embiid on social media.

Towns then took control early against the Kings. He had 11 points in the first quarter and was active defensively throughout. He added season highs with five blocks and five assists.

Minnesota used a 13-0 run in the third quarter, capping the stretch on a jumper by Butler for an 84-64 lead. The Timberwolves led by as many as 27 and coasted to the win after a string of close games. Their previous six games were all decided by six points or less.

at Golden State 112, Dallas 97: Kevin Durant had 36 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists, Klay Thompson scored 25 points and the Warriors cruised to their eighth consecutive victory.

New York 111, at Brooklyn 104: Kristaps Prozingis left early in the third quarter but Courtney Lee scored 18 of his 27 points in the second half to lead the Knicks.

Detroit 105, at Atlanta 91: Andre Drummond had 12 points, 19 rebounds and a career-high nine assists against the NBA’s worst team, helping the Pistons end a seven-game losing streak.

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