Rockets vs. Timberwolves 2018 live results: Houston takes commanding 3-1 lead over Minnesota

A huge third quarter propels Houston to a much needed win.

Game 4 was a game, until it wasn’t. The Timberwolves gave a valiant effort in the first two quarters, even leading the Rockets by one point going into halftime. Then the Rockets turned into the team we had seen all regular season. And they scored 50 points in the third quarter, their highest scoring quarter of the entire season.

The Rockets’ biggest lead was 35 points and while the final score was 19 points, it was never that close. Houston has not lost consecutive games since January and they clearly kept that streak alive tonight. When Kristen Ledlow asked James Harden what the difference was he simply said ... “We hit the switch.”

They certainly did. James Harden who started 0-for-7 on the night before finishing with 36 points. Chris Paul put in 25 points of his own and Clint Capela finished with 14 points and 17 rebounds.

For Minnesota, Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 22 points and 15 rebounds.

The Rockets will look to close out the series on Wednesday night on TNT.

Rockets 119, Wolves 100 - End of 4Q

That is all she wrote. This one was over long ago.

Rockets 100, Wolves 69 - End of 3Q

A FIFTY-POINT QUARTER FOR THE ROCKETS. THEY OUT SCORED THE WOLVES BY 30 POINTS IN JUST ONE QUARTER.

Rockets 73, Wolves 54 - 6:13 3Q

It’s been all Chris Paul and James Harden in the third quarter. Houston has outscored Minnesota 24-5 in this quarter alone.

Rockets 50, Wolves 49, - Halftime

The Rockets shot 38 percent in the first half. The Wolves shot 47 percent. The Rockets still have a one-point lead and James Harden is 4-of-14 from the field. Minnesota is going to need more than a Derrick Rose revival to tie this series up.

Rockets 46, Wolves 42 - 5:14 2Q

The Rockets can get it all back so quickly. Harden started 0-for-7 from the field but now has 10 points. Trevor Ariza still leads the way with 13 for Houston.

Wolves 32, Rockets 27 - 8:41 2Q

The Wolves are just bigger, faster, and stronger right now. Eric Gordon missed a wide open corner three and while most of the Rockets hung their heads, Derrick Rose sprinted down the court for a layup.

Rockets 21, Wolves 21 - End of 1Q

Okay, okay okay. We have a game here. It’s only one quarter but once again the Wolves look like they’re prepared to hang with this Rockets team. Once again, Derrick Rose came off the bench to give Minnesota a spark. He has a quick three points, two rebounds, and two assists.

Rockets 11, Wolves 8 - 6:00 1Q

This is a low scoring game at this point. Trevor Ariza is still the only Rocket to score and has all 11 points. For the Timberwolves, Karl-Anthony Towns picked up his second foul early in the first quarter and he was forced to sit.

Rockets 8, Wolves 6 - 9:32 1Q

Trevor Ariza is only averaging eight points a game this series. He already has ALL EIGHT of the Rockets points so far. This is exactly what Houston was looking for. On the other hand, Minnesota looks aggressive early and that confidence from Game 3 is still there.

The Minnesota Timberwolves will attempt to even their first-round NBA playoff series against the top-seed Houston Rockets in Game 4 on Monday night at Target Center in Minneapolis (8 p.m. ET, TNT).

Minnesota showed life with a 121-105 win on Saturday in Game 3 behind 28 points from Jimmy Butler, one of three Wolves to score at least 20. Karl-Anthony Towns added 18 points and 16 rebounds in the win after a dreadful 13 total points in the first two games combined.

“This city deserves being in the playoffs a little bit longer,” Butler told the Associated Press. “We’ll see what we have. But as long as we guard, as long as we defend, we’ll put ourselves in a good enough position to win.”

Houston beat the Golden State Warriors on Jan. 20 in a showdown of the top two teams in the league. The Rockets’ 18-point win began a 35-5 run to close out the season, ending the Warriors’ three-year run of having the best record in the NBA.

After cruising into the playoffs Houston won the first two games of this series, surviving an upset effort in Game 1 followed by a blowout win in Game 2. But after Minnesota’s 16-point home win on Saturday the Rockets find themselves in Game 4 facing some adversity for the first time in quite a while.

James Harden led all scorers with 29 points in Game 3, and is averaging 28.3 points for the series, to go with 7.3 assists and five boards.

The Rockets haven’t lost consecutive games since January 4-6 to the Warriors and Detroit Pistons.

Rockets vs. Timberwolves Game 4 info

Location: Target Center, Minneapolis

Game time: 8 p.m. ET

TV: TNT

Announcers: Kevin Harlan, Reggie Miller and Kristen Ledlow

Online streaming: Watch TNT