NBA: Minnesota repeats dominant win over Miami

By Leobert Julian de la Peña

The Minnesota Timberwolves cooled off the Miami Heat during their much-anticipated rematch, 122-94, in the ongoing NBA regular season on Jan. 7, 2026.

Fresh off a double-digit dub in their first meeting three days ago, the Timberwolves made sure that their trip back to their home court wouldn’t be spoiled, while also extending their winning streak to three consecutive games.

Unlike their first matchup, where the Heat nearly stole the win following a third-quarter surge, Minnesota this time secured a wire-to-wire victory, relying on a balanced offensive attack that proved too much for the visiting Heat.

However, the Heat were still an efficient two-way squad in the first 12 minutes of action and even took a seven-point lead before Minnesota’s superstar Anthony Edwards stepped up and changed the complexion of the game.

Edwards escaped a slow start and came out piping hot at the most perfect time of the first frame, when the Heat threatened to swell their cushion to double digits.

During that demoralizing sequence, Edwards scored back-to-back three-pointers, a ferocious dunk over Bam Adebayo, and a series of insane fadeaway perimeter jumpers that steered Minnesota back into the game.

All hell broke loose in the following period when Minnesota outscored the Heat, 34-25, and put an early exclamation point when they ended the third quarter with a 16-point advantage.

Picking up where Edwards left off during the Timberwolves’ third-quarter surge were Jaden McDaniels and Julius Randle, as they nearly outscored the Miami starting rotation with their daredevil drives to the cup.

The Heat showed some signs of life when the fourth quarter kicked off, courtesy of Tyler Herro and Norman Powell’s conversions. However, a counterattack from Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo made things worse for Miami, as the lead ballooned to as much as 31 points, the biggest of the game.

Edwards spearheaded Minnesota’s impressive outing with 26 points, five rebounds, three assists, and two blocks, while McDaniels added 19 markers, three boards, and two steals.

Randle replicated his double-double outing and tallied 15 points and 11 rebounds, while Naz Reid sparked the bench mob with 14 markers, six boards, and two dimes.

Minnesota will gun for its fourth consecutive win on Jan. 9, 2026, against the Cleveland Cavaliers, while Miami seeks to rebound on the same date, against the Chicago Bulls.