MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — LaMelo Ball had a season-high 24 points and Jaden McDaniels scored 23 as the Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Clippers 127-101 on Friday night in NBA Cup group play for their first win without star Anthony Edwards.
Bones Hyland added 19 points and eight assists off the bench for the Timberwolves (4-2), who offered a glimpse of how they can still thrive while Edwards recovers from arthroscopic knee surgery.
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Los Angeles Clippers guard Darius Garland (10) celebrates after making a 3-point basket during the first half of an NBA Cup basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Los Angeles Clippers guard Kris Dunn (8) loses control of the ball as Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball, center, defends during the first half of an NBA Cup basketball game, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball dribbles downcourt during the second half of an NBA Cup basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball (1) shoots over Los Angeles Clippers forward Isaiah Jackson, right, during the first half of an NBA Cup basketball game, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball (1) celebrates after making a 3-point basket during the second half of an NBA Cup basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
After a 127-125 overtime loss at Cleveland on Monday, a fresh exam for Edwards indicated the need for the procedure after the wear-and-tear injury limited him to a career-low 61 regular-season games in 2025-26. The Timberwolves were out of sorts for most of a 119-114 loss to Golden State on Wednesday, before regrouping behind their new star Ball and the two-way excellence of McDaniels.
Ball made three 3-pointers in the fourth quarter as the Timberwolves used a 20-2 surge to run away with the game. Each of their four victories have come by more than 20 points. McDaniels finished 11 for 15 from the floor, with seven assists and six rebounds.
Backup guard Jaylen Clark relieved McDaniels from some of the defensive duty on Darius Garland and helped force five turnovers by the Clippers star. Clark had five points, two steals and a plus-23 rating in 17 minutes.
Garland scored 24 points on 10-for-22 shooting and Brook Lopez added 13 points and six rebounds off the bench for the Clippers (1-4), who lost their fourth consecutive game. They've played so far without newcomers Brandon Ingram and Max Strus due to foot injuries.
Clippers rookie Keaton Wagler had 12 points on 2-for-11 shooting and was minus-24. Rui Hachimura returned to the starting lineup from a one-game absence (quadriceps) with 12 points in 26 minutes.
Clippers: At the Golden State Warriors on Sunday.
Timberwolves: At the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday.
See AP’s full NBA coverage here
Los Angeles Clippers guard Darius Garland (10) celebrates after making a 3-point basket during the first half of an NBA Cup basketball game against the Minnesota Timberwolves, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Los Angeles Clippers guard Kris Dunn (8) loses control of the ball as Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball, center, defends during the first half of an NBA Cup basketball game, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball dribbles downcourt during the second half of an NBA Cup basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball (1) shoots over Los Angeles Clippers forward Isaiah Jackson, right, during the first half of an NBA Cup basketball game, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
Minnesota Timberwolves guard LaMelo Ball (1) celebrates after making a 3-point basket during the second half of an NBA Cup basketball game against the Los Angeles Clippers, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Minneapolis. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)
ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) — The U.S. Department of Justice pushed Friday for a court order to isolate certain Alaska ballots to investigate potential voter confusion, while federal officials confirmed the existence of a criminal probe over a Senate candidate who shares a name with the Republican incumbent.
The dueling developments came days before Tuesday's ranked choice general election, in a race headlined by two-term Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan and Democratic former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola. The race is among a handful nationwide expected to determine control of the Senate.
Alaska U.S. Attorney Michael Heyman told reporters in Anchorage that the investigation has been ongoing for several months, but recent revelations from The New York Times that Peltola’s campaign appeared to be involved in recruiting retired teacher Dan J. Sullivan have resulted in a “significant surge of law enforcement assets to Alaska."
Separately, the Justice Department — as part of a lawsuit it filed last week — asked a judge to order that state elections officials isolate ballots ranking Dan J. Sullivan to investigate potential voter “confusion” with the senator.
Alaska Assistant U.S. Attorney E. Bryan Wilson, in a filing, said the government “seeks to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purposes of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation become necessary.”
The Department of Justice also filed with the court a list of proposed questions it seeks to compel the Peltola campaign and the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee to answer as part of the civil case seeking to block certification of the Senate race if the incumbent loses. President Donald Trump has said he told the department to file the case.
Peltola denied Thursday that she knew anything about the effort to put Dan J. Sullivan on the ballot: “I am not interested in tricking voters," she said.
Democrats, including the DSCC, have repeatedly denied that they were involved in any campaign trick. Dan J. Sullivan has long denied he was running at Democrats’ behest.
The request to segregate the ballots in Alaska comes after the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the Justice Department’s request for California to set aside disputed ballots received in the midterm election sent to some 20,000 people the administration contends may not be U.S. citizens. California officials argued the list is highly unreliable and most likely includes many people who are U.S. citizens.
Justice Department attorneys in the Alaska case said there is a “substantial risk” that Dan J. Sullivan's candidacy “will mislead voters and ultimately result in an electoral process that lacks integrity.”
“To guard against this danger, the United States seeks an order directing Defendants to preserve and segregate all ballots ranking Daniel J. Sullivan for the purposes of investigating whether such ranking was the product of voter confusion, should such an investigation become necessary,” the filing states. It requests a decision by Monday.
Attorneys for the state in response questioned how segregation would be possible, writing that voters' ballots are comingled in the ballot box on Election Day and that election workers couldn't segregate ballots ranking Dan J. Sullivan without violating ballot secrecy protections. Ballots segregated or not wouldn't reveal any voter's reason for voting for Dan J. Sullivan, they said.
They have asked a judge to dismiss the case and said Alaska elections officials already took steps to distinguish the two Sullivans on the ballot. The senator is listed as Dan S. Sullivan, Republican and incumbent, while the challenger is listed as Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., with no party affiliation. That's also how they appeared on the August open primary ballot.
Attorneys for the state also have argued that Alaska’s ranked voting system further addresses concerns about potential confusion by allowing voters to rank both Sullivans.
Heyman on Friday would not say what potential crimes authorities are looking into or the targets of the probe, but asked members of the public to come forward with tips that could help investigators.
It’s highly unusual for Justice Department officials to publicly discuss a criminal investigation or even confirm its existence. The timing of the press conference is particularly notable given the Justice Department has had a longstanding practice of avoiding taking public steps in the weeks leading up to an election that could be perceived as attempting to influence a political outcome.
Trump during a rally late Friday in Florida said Peltola and Dan J. Sullivan should be prosecuted. He noted U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche was in attendance and said, “He’s going to make his own decision.”
Trump, then addressing Blanche directly, said of decisions regarding the case, “Todd, please make your own,” and watched Blanche’s response.
Trump added: “OK, he said ‘yes.’”
Peltola, at a campaign rally in Anchorage late Friday, said she is “so deeply offended by these accusations about having any involvement with anyone else’s candidacy." She said she doesn't need any help in winning the race outside of the support of voters.
Federal prosecutors this week issued dozens of grand jury subpoenas and requests to preserve records, a person familiar with the matter told The Associated Press.
Republican Alaska Gov. Mike Dunleavy said, following The New York Times' reporting, that he'd ordered an investigation into whether any violations took place.
Meanwhile, the Alaska Democratic Party has sued state elections officials, alleging absentee in-person voting sites did not open as advertised in some rural communities. The director of the Division of Elections in a letter dated Monday said the agency signs agreements with local or tribal offices to operate the sites and that most of the 18 highlighted had opened. A message seeking comment from the state Department of Law was not immediately returned.
Durkin Richer reported from Washington. Bohrer reported from Juneau, Alaska. AP reporter Will Weissert contributed from Washington.
FBI Special Agent in Charge Matthew Schlegel of the Anchorage field office participates in a news conference on a criminal investigation related to an alleged scheme to confuse voters by putting a Senate candidate on the ballot with the same name as the Republican incumbent, at the James M. Fitzgerald U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska Michael J. Heyman holds a news conference on a criminal investigation related to an alleged scheme to confuse voters by putting a Senate candidate on the ballot with the same name as the Republican incumbent, at the James M. Fitzgerald U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
U.S. Attorney for the District of Alaska Michael J. Heyman holds a news conference on a criminal investigation related to an alleged scheme to confuse voters by putting a Senate candidate on the ballot with the same name as the Republican incumbent, at the James M. Fitzgerald U.S. Courthouse and Federal Building, Friday, Oct. 30, 2026, in Anchorage, Alaska. (AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson)
FILE - This combination photo shows Sen. Dan Sullivan, R-Alaska, left, in Palmer, Alaska, Aug. 17, 2026, and a candidate in Alaska's Senate race, Dan Sullivan, right, in Petersburg, Alaska, July 3, 2026. (AP Photos/Mark Thiessen/Becky Bohrer, File)
Democratic Senate candidate Mary Peltola speaks during a campaign event Thursday, Oct. 29, 2026, in Juneau, Alaska. (AP Photo/Chloe Anderson)
A sample election ballot is displayed in Anchorage, Alaska, on Friday, Oct. 23, 2026. (AP Photo/Haven Daley)
