IT WAS DARK on the Minnesota Timberwolves team plane as it took off from San Antonio late on the night of March 14, headed home to Minneapolis. But it wasn't especially quiet.
There was no chance of that after the game star center Karl-Anthony Towns just had, scoring a career-high 60 points in a win against the Spurs to continue Minnesota's post-All-Star surge.
The entire drive from the arena to the airport had been something of a team party, with veteran guard Patrick Beverley sending each player, coach and staffer to the back of the team bus to, in his words, "shake hands with greatness.