Another Embarrassing Road Loss for Timberwolves

ATLANTA (AP) — Kent Bazemore's favorite play, a chase-down blocked shot, was even sweeter when the defensive gem followed his biggest shot of the game.

Bazemore scored 22 points, including a tiebreaking 3-pointer with 2:09 remaining, and the Atlanta Hawks rallied after trailing by 11 in the third quarter to beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 105-100 on Monday night.

The clutch 3 by Bazemore gave the Hawks a 99-96 lead they did not relinquish. The margin was only one when Bazemore chased down former teammate Jeff Teague for a blocked shot that stood following a replay review by officials.

"By far my favorite play in the game of basketball is the chase-down block," Bazemore said.

Bazemore added a layup to stretch the lead back to three. He also had a chase-down block in the first half.

"He fuels our team with great competitive spirit and great competitive energy," Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer said.

A layup by Taj Gibson cut Atlanta's lead to 101-100. Following a missed short jumper by Dennis Schroder, Minnesota called timeout with 14.5 seconds remaining. Unable to make the inbounds pass, Teague was whistled for a five-second violation before trying to call a timeout.

Schroder had 18 points, including four free throws in the final 11.3 seconds.

The Hawks began the night with the NBA's worst record but have won six straight home games against teams from the Western Conference.

Jimmy Butler had 24 points and Andrew Wiggins scored 18 for Minnesota.

Butler was sharp in his second game back after missing four with right knee soreness. He went 7 for 15 from the field and made each of his nine free throws.

Minnesota appeared to be on the verge of putting the game away when it led 71-60 in the third period. Atlanta quickly trimmed the margin back to single digits.

"I felt like we could have put them away in that third quarter but we just didn't get it done," Gibson said. "When you give a team like that confidence late in the game, it gets scary. They started hitting shots."

TIP-INS

Timberwolves: Began the night one game behind San Antonio for the No. 3 seed in the Western Conference. ... Minnesota fell to 1-7 on the road in January. .. Gibson scored 17 points and Karl-Anthony Towns had 15 points and 13 rebounds. ... Teague shot only 1 of 12 from the field for two points with 10 assists.