Central Plains FFA Chapter

01/27 01:04 CST Minnesota plays Dallas on 3-game road slide Minnesota plays Dallas on 3-game road slide By The Associated Press Minnesota Timberwolves (28-19, sixth in the Western Conference) vs. Dallas Mavericks (19-27, 11th in the Western Conference) Dallas; Wednesday, 8:30 p.m. EST BOTTOM LINE: Minnesota travels to Dallas looking to stop its three-game road skid. The Mavericks are 11-19 in Western Conference games. Dallas ranks second in the Western Conference with 53.3 points per game in the paint led by Anthony Davis averaging 13.1. The Timberwolves are 15-14 in conference matchups. Minnesota is seventh in the league with 33.8 defensive rebounds per game led by Rudy Gobert averaging 7.5. The Mavericks are shooting 47.3% from the field this season, 1.4 percentage points higher than the 45.9% the Timberwolves allow to opponents. The Timberwolves average 119.0 points per game, 2.5 more than the 116.5 the Mavericks give up. The two teams play for the second time this season. The Timberwolves defeated the Mavericks 120-96 in their last meeting on Nov. 18. Naz Reid led the Timberwolves with 22 points, and Jaden Hardy led the Mavericks with 17 points. TOP PERFORMERS: Cooper Flagg is scoring 18.8 points per game with 6.4 rebounds and 4.1 assists for the Mavericks. Naji Marshall is averaging 20.0 points and 5.9 rebounds while shooting 57.6% over the last 10 games. Julius Randle is averaging 22.2 points, seven rebounds and 5.4 assists for the Timberwolves. Jaden McDaniels is averaging 15.6 points and 3.2 assists over the last 10 games. LAST 10 GAMES: Mavericks: 6-4, averaging 117.2 points, 46.4 rebounds, 26.3 assists, 7.8 steals and 4.3 blocks per game while shooting 48.0% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 113.2 points per game. Timberwolves: 4-6, averaging 116.6 points, 46.2 rebounds, 26.9 assists, 8.4 steals and 6.2 blocks per game while shooting 48.6% from the field. Their opponents have averaged 115.4 points. INJURIES: Mavericks: Max Christie: day to day (ankle), Dereck Lively II: out for season (foot), Moussa Cisse: day to day (illness), Klay Thompson: day to day (injury management), Kyrie Irving: out (knee), Dante Exum: out for season (knee), Anthony Davis: out (hand), Cooper Flagg: day to day (injury management), Brandon Williams: day to day (knee). Timberwolves: Terrence Shannon Jr.: out (foot), Anthony Edwards: out (injury management). ___ The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.