The Timberwolves are in a place no team wants to be in, but one that all too many teams are in right now. The Wolves are adjusting to a serious injury. They lost Anthony Edwards last week after the superstar underwent right knee surgery that will sideline him for multiple months.

Still, the Wolves entered their game Wednesday night in Houston owners of a 5-3 record. They scored 952 total points en route to that record, their most in franchise history over the first eight games of a season, which included a 112-110 win over the rebuilding Bucks Monday night.

But the Rockets pose quite the opposite challenge. They were 7-1 ahead of Wednesday with the NBA’s No. 1-rated offense. The Wolves, down Edwards and Terrence Shannon Jr. (left hip contusion), needed a lot to go right for them to walk out of Toyota Center victorious.

And that is exactly what happened. The Wolves beat Houston 117-107, handing the Rockets their first loss at home on the season in a balanced, mature and timely team-wide display.

Here are the five numbers that stand out from the win:

LaMelo Ball scores 12 points in the fourth

Up until the fourth quarter, Ball was having a disappointing showing—something that has been relatively common for him so far this season.

He had eight points, four assists, and six turnovers in 23 minutes, shooting 2-for-7 from the floor and 2-for-5 from deep. Houston’s point-of-attack physicality—as good as any in the NBA right now—seemed to bother Ball, who looked out of sync and, at times, out of control with the ball.

But Ball, who has been dealing with right wrist pain recently, stuck with it against the Rockets. He completely flipped a deflating performance for him and a potential Wolves loss into a fourth-quarter takeover and Minnesota’s best win of the season in the blink of an eye.

“He’s just so talented,” Chris Finch told reporters postgame. “You put the ball in his hands down the stretch, and he just made the right play after the right play after the right play. He kept trusting his teammates, and they kept trusting the next pass. That’s really been the key.”

look at Melo, man. https://t.co/PqYRj9B1Yj pic.twitter.com/solOG9MIwn

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) November 5, 2026

Ball scored 12 points in eight fourth-quarter minutes. He did so on 4 of 4 from the floor and 2 of 2 from deep, the third time in his career that he scored at least 10 points in the fourth without missing a shot, per Stathead. Ball also dished out two assists. He finished the game with 20 points on 6 of 11 from the floor and 4 of 7 from deep. The Wolves outscored Houston by 15 points in the 31 minutes with him on the floor.

As the Wolves continue to move forward without Edwards, they will need Ball to be playing at the height of his powers in crunch time. That is typically the time in which Edwards dominates. But now, Minnesota needs Ball to truly quarterback the offense late in games. The Wolves have proven that they have enough offense elsewhere to weather slow starts from Ball. 

But they need him to be a positive leader down the stretch of games, which he certainly was against one of the NBA’s best defenses Wednesday.

Bones Hyland creates 76% of Minnesota’s total bench points

While Ball struggled early, Bones Hyland helped pick up the slack with the high-level shot-making that had Edwards calling him a star last season.

🔥 BONES 🔥 pic.twitter.com/2V3bFZ41z4

— Minnesota Timberwolves (@Timberwolves) November 5, 2026

Hyland scored a season-high 19 points in 16 minutes on 7 of 13 from the floor and 4 of 7 from deep. He also registered four assists, all of which were to members of Minnesota’s bench. With both his scoring and passing, Hyland created 29 points, 76% of the Wolves’ total bench points.

The streaky, sometimes inefficient guard maturely led Minnesota’s second unit and gave the Wolves on-ball creation when they weren’t getting it from their starting point guard. Hyland balanced his electric shot-making with mature playmaking and took control when his team needed him most.

Wolves score 33 points off turnovers

Minnesota entered Wednesday’s game averaging the fourth-most points scored off turnovers in the NBA (22.9). And the Wolves knew they needed to lean into that part of their game to beat the Rockets, who boast an intimidating half-court defense headed by Amen Thompson.

Thirty-three points off 18 turnovers for the Wolves Wednesday are the most points they have converted off giveaways so far this season. Minnesota maintained a fast-paced approach, led by Ayo Dosunmu, who scored a game-high-tying 21 points by getting downhill and catching the Rockets on their heels.

The Wolves did need a lot to go right to win in Houston. But playing fast was something they could control regardless of makes or misses. Playing fast and decisively let Minnesota repeatedly find offense, keep pace with Houston’s shot-making, and eventually slay the NBA’s best offensive team.

Alperen Sengun shoots 0 of 9 with Gobert on the floor, 5 of 6 with him off

In three games against the Wolves last season, Alperen Sengun averaged 25.7 points on 57.9% from the floor. He possesses unique footwork and a backpack full of weird floaters and push shots that give a Hall-of-Fame-level rim protector in Rudy Gobert trouble. But Wednesday, Gobert flipped last season’s script.

During the 28 minutes in which Gobert and Sengun shared the court, Houston’s All-Star big man shot 0 of 9 from the floor and scored six points on 6 of 8 from the free throw line. In the 10 minutes Sengun played without Gobert flanking his every move, Sengun shot 5 of 6 from the floor and scored 11 points.

Gobert defended straight up. He did a good job not falling for Sengun’s foul baiting and largely muffled a player who just scored 26 points on 80% shooting Monday against the Celtics. Gobert was the defensive anchor that served as a reminder of how essential he is to this current Wolves team, despite his persistent offensive woes at the rim and free-throw line.

Jonathan Kuminga shoots 3 of 6 from deep

Finch believes the Wolves would be lost without Kuminga, who signed in Minnesota on a two-year, $12.4 million contract this summer. The Wolves worked tirelessly to recruit Kuminga to the Twin Cities, and their effort has paid off exponentially so far this season.

The Wolves brought Kuminga in to be the player they could count on to do the dirty work for them. And largely, Kuminga has been that player. He has had two games in his career in which he played at least 33 minutes while scoring 10 or fewer points. Both of those games have come in Minnesota. And in both of those games, he was a winning force.

But throughout all the scrappy rebounds and desperate defensive plays, Kuminga has been a lights-out shooter from deep. He connected on three of his seven long-range attempts against the Rockets, two of which came in the fourth quarter.

“He’s really shooting the lights out for us right now because he is getting good shots in the flow of the offense with his feet set,” Finch said postgame. “And they just all feel like they are going to go in.”

After shooting 4 of 7 from deep against the Rockets, Kuminga is now connecting on 46.3% of his threes this season. He has made at least two 3s in seven of nine games. In total, Kuminga has made 19 triples, the most he has made in a nine-game span in the NBA, per Stathead.

It is hard to point out a weakness for Kuminga over his first nine games in Minnesota. He is getting dirty, but he is also connecting at an unexpected rate from deep. And because of all that, the Wolves have a 6-3 record, three wins without their best player, and just posted their best victory of the young season in Houston.