CLEVELAND: LeBron James had 25 points and nine assists and the Cavaliers survived a late charge for a 114-107 victory Monday against the Minnesota Timberwolves for Tyronn Lue’s first victory as a head coach.
Lue replaced David Blatt, who was fired Friday despite the Cavs (31-12) owning the best record in the Eastern Conference. Lue’s first victory didn’t come easy.
A three-point play from Zach LaVine pulled the Timberwolves within 110-107 with 16.5 seconds left. James sealed the win with a pair of free throws at the other end.
Rookie center Karl Anthony-Towns had 26 points and 11 rebounds and Andrew Wiggins had 20 points for the Timberwolves, who were trying to win consecutive games for just the second time since November.
Center Tristan Thompson returned to the starting lineup and had 19 points and 12 rebounds for the Cavs, while Kyrie Irving had 17 points, nine rebounds and four assists.
The Cavs struggled all night against the inferior Timberwolves. A 3-pointer by Iman Shumpert extended their lead to 90-75 early in the fourth quarter, but Minnesota scored 12 of the game’s next 14 points and a transition basket by LaVine off a turnover pulled the Wolves within 92-87 with 7:21 left.
A turnaround baseline jumper by Wiggins over James pulled them within 106-102 in the final minute, but the Cavs made just enough baskets to survive.
The Cavs beat the Timberwolves by 26 points less than three weeks ago in Minnesota.
The Cavs have been trying to play faster since Lue replaced Blatt as head coach. They lost by double figures to the Chicago Bulls on Saturday and had trouble putting away the struggling Timberwolves on Monday.
Lue is trying to get the players in better shape to run and he’s trying to install more packages for Kevin Love in places where he’s comfortable, but it isn’t coming easy. Lue didn’t disagree with the idea the Cavs are almost going back to training camp with their conditioning and new play calls.
“It kind of is [like training camp] because we’re putting guys in different situations, in different spots, trying to put guys in their comfort zone,” Lue said. “Just trying to open the floor up more and playing with more space.”
Love had 11 points and six rebounds on a night all five starters scored in double figures, although the faster pace led to sloppy ball handling and a porous defense.
The Cavs committed eight turnovers within the game’s first 14 minutes and ended the night with 15. The Timberwolves shot 49 percent, including 60 percent in the first half.
Jason Lloyd can be reached at jlloyd@thebeaconjournal.com. Read the Cavs blog at www.ohio.com/cavs. Follow him on Twitter www.twitter.com/JasonLloydABJ.