Naz Reid's 27 points help lead short-handed Timberwolves past West-leading Thunder 116-101

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Naz Reid had 27 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists for the short-handed Minnesota Timberwolves in a 116-101 victory over Oklahoma City on Thursday night that stopped the Thunder's seven-game winning streak.

Anthony Edwards scored 23 points and Jaden McDaniels added 21 points to propel the Wolves (31-25) into the All-Star break with an inspired performance against the West-leading Thunder (44-10) behind a small-ball strategy necessitated by the absence of their usual starting frontcourt.

Shai Gilgeous-Alexander had 24 points, nine assists and eight rebounds to lead the Thunder after shooting 2 for 13 in the first half.

Thunder: After beating Miami at home while Chet Holmgren rested on Wednesday, Oklahoma City had to turn around for the trip north for one more game before the break. The second pick in the 2022 draft has had a slow re-entry after a 39-game absence to a broken pelvis. Holmgren had 11 points and 12 rebounds in 30 minutes.

Timberwolves: After a two-point loss at home to short-handed Milwaukee a night earlier, Minnesota played without four of its top eight scorers and met the challenge with a burst of young energy. First-round draft pick Terrence Shannon was the first man off the bench and had all 13 of his points in the first half.

Edwards made the arena erupt when he drove from the wing for a soaring dunk over Holmgren in the first quarter before glaring and yelling at the 7-foot-1 native of Minneapolis, who ignored the taunt.

Gilgeous-Alexander, the NBA ’s leading scorer at 32.6 points per game entering the night, had his streak of 25-point games end at 22.

Oklahoma City, after a seven-day break, plays at Utah on Feb. 21, when Minnesota visits Houston. Then the Thunder and Timberwolves play on back-to-back days, in Minneapolis on Feb. 23 and in Oklahoma City on Feb. 24.

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

Oklahoma City Thunder forward Chet Holmgren (7) walks across the court during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Oklahoma City Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault yells toward a referee during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) celebrates after a dunk during the first half of an NBA basketball game against the Oklahoma City Thunder, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Timberwolves center Naz Reid (11), left, works toward the basket as Oklahoma City Thunder forward Jalen Williams (8) defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Timberwolves center Naz Reid (11) works toward the basket as Oklahoma City Thunder guard Luguentz Dort (5) defends during the first half of an NBA basketball game, Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

WARSAW, Poland (AP) — A former Polish justice minister who faces prosecution in his homeland over alleged abuse of power said Monday that he has been granted asylum in Hungary.

Zbigniew Ziobro was a key figure in the government led by the nationalist conservative Law and Justice party that ran Poland between 2015 and 2023. That administration established political control over key judicial institutions by stacking higher courts with friendly judges and punishing its critics with disciplinary action or assignments to far-away locations.

Current Prime Minister Donald Tusk’s government came to power more than two years ago with ambitions to roll back the changes, but efforts to undo them have been blocked by two successive presidents aligned with the national right.

In October, prosecutors requested the lifting of Ziobro's parliamentary immunity to press charges against him. They allege among other things that Ziobro misused a fund for victims of violence, including for the purchase of Israeli Pegasus surveillance software.

Tusk’s party says Law and Justice used Pegasus to spy illegally on political opponents while in power. Ziobro says he acted lawfully.

Hungary, led by nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orbán, has hosted several politicians close to Law and Justice while Polish authorities were seeking them.

In a lengthy post on X Monday, Ziobro wrote that he had “decided to accept the asylum granted to me by the government of Hungary due to the political persecution in Poland.”

“I have decided to remain abroad until genuine guarantees of the rule of law are restored in Poland,” he said. “I believe that instead of acquiescing to being silenced and subjected to a torrent of lies — which I would have no opportunity to refute — I can do more by fighting the mounting lawlessness in Poland.”

Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó said in Budapest on Monday that Hungarian authorities have granted asylum to “several” individuals who would face political persecution in Poland, according to his ministry. He declined to specify their names.

In an English-language post on X, Tusk wrote that “the former Minister of Justice(!), Mr. Ziobro, who was the mastermind of the political corruption system, has asked the government of Victor Orbán for political asylum.”

“A logical choice,” he added.

FILE - The leader of the Polish junior coalition partners Zbigniew Ziobro, speaks to reporters alongside in Warsaw, Poland, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2020. (AP Photo/Czarek Sokolowski, file)