Skip to content
Sixers

Sixers-Timberwolves observations: Tobias Harris stands out, Karl-Anthony Towns struggles

The 76ers defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves. 118-109, Saturday night at the Target Center.

The Minnesota Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns pulls down a defensive rebound against Jimmy Butler during the first half.
The Minnesota Timberwolves' Karl-Anthony Towns pulls down a defensive rebound against Jimmy Butler during the first half.Read moreAaron Lavinsky / MCT

MINNEAPOLIS – The 76ers defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves, 118-109, Saturday night at the Target Center.

Here are some observations and best and worst awards:

Three observations

- Tobias Harris, once again, stood out in a game Joel Embiid where did not play. After a game-high 25 points, the Sixers power forward is averaging 22.7 points in the 10 games Embiid has missed. Harris averaged 15.3 points in the 12 games he’s played alongside Embiid.

- The Sixers bring out the worst in Karl-Anthony Towns, regardless of who he is paired up against. Jonah Bolden, who started at center in place of Embiid, torched the Timberwolves’ two-time All-Star center on this night. Towns graded out at a minus-16 while scoring 21 points on 8-for-17 shooting. His 42.7 shooting percentage and 15.6 scoring average in seven games versus the Sixers are the worst against any team NBA team.

- While this was a hostile environment for Jimmy Butler, it kind of had a home-game vibe for his teammates. That’s because around 300 vocal Sixers fans from the Rights to Ricky Sanchez podcast were in attendance. They filled up two sections of the arena and chanted “Let’s Go Sixers” and “Trust the Process” in addition to other chants. They also cheered on former Sixer Dario Saric, who along with Robert Covington and Jerryd Bayless were traded to Minnesota in exchange for Butler and Justin Patton in November. T.J. McConnell and Covington greeted the fans after the game.

Best and worst awards

- Best performance: Bolden has to get this award. He finished with a career-high 19 points while making 7 of 10 shots, including going 5 of 7 on three-pointers. The rookie also had 8 rebounds, a steal and 3 blocks.

- Worst performance: I had to give this to Josh Okogie. The Minnesota shooting guard graded out with a game-worst minus-18 while scoring five points on 1-for-5 shooting.

- Best defensive performance: This goes to Bolden for his game-high 3 blocks and 1 steal.

- Worst statistic: This goes to Saric missing all five of his shot attempts in the first half.

-Best statistic: This goes to the Sixers grabbing 15 offensive rebounds, which led to 21 second-chance points.