Game Recap

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Associated Press

MINNEAPOLIS -- — Anthony Edwards scored 18 of his 33 points in the third quarter and had nine rebounds to carry the Minnesota Timberwolves in a tone-setting 120-95 victory over the Phoenix Suns to start the first round of the playoffs on Saturday.

Karl-Anthony Towns added 19 points, Nickeil Alexander-Walker scored 18 points on 7-for-12 shooting and Rudy Gobert locked down the lane with 14 points, 16 rebounds and constant shot-altering defense to lead the Wolves to their first Game 1 home win in the playoffs in 20 years.

Kevin Durant scored 31 points on 11-for-17 shooting to lead the Suns, whose disadvantages in depth and size were exploited. Devin Booker had 18 points on 5-for-16 shooting and Bradley Beal added 15 points, but the Suns were outrebounded 52-28 and outscored 52-34 in the paint by the Wolves.

Game 2 is in Minneapolis on Tuesday before the best-of-seven series shifts to Phoenix for Game 3.

Edwards led a 19-4 run to close the third quarter, stretching his arms wide to connect with the crowd after a couple of his biggest shots down that stretch. He stared and barked at Durant, who could only grin at the 22-year-old's bravado.

With 3:37 left, Edwards put the bow on this performance by stealing the ball from Durant — after Gobert had poked it loose — and finishing with a slam on the other end.

His enthusiasm was contagious throughout the afternoon. After picking up his third foul late in the second quarter, Edwards was twirling a towel on the bench in tribute to the effort to take the lead into double digits for the first time in the game.

Durant, the 14-time All-Star with two championship rings who arrived in the desert a little over a year ago in the first move in the major overhaul of the roster, was in prime playoff form. Be it a fadeaway, a turnaround or a spot-up, the Wolves and their NBA -best defense had no answer when the 6-foot-10 Durant climbed into the air with his smooth jump shot.

But Booker, the anchor of the big three with Durant and Beal who's the only player left from the 2021 team that reached the NBA Finals, had nothing to match. He couldn't get layups to fall, let alone jumpers. Grayson Allen, the league's leading 3-point shooter, missed all three of his shots and had just four points.

The Wolves had sellouts for every home game this season for the first time since they moved into Target Center 34 years ago. Their fans — as antsy for a postseason run as any in American pro sports — brought finals-level energy to the first round that the Wolves have not escaped since their only advancement 20 years ago, a crowd that included former (Adrian Peterson) and current (Justin Jefferson) Vikings stars.

The big-money players gave the Wolves what they needed, but one of their edges in this series ought to be a bench that backed it up with a 41-18 scoring advantage on the Suns' reserves.

Alexander-Walker was in the thick of the second quarter surge, highlighted by his interception of a stray pass by Allen in the lane to key a fast break layup near the final minute of the half. Alexander-Walker hit a corner 3-pointer right before the third-quarter buzzer for a 20-point lead.

Wolves backup Kyle Anderson suffered a hip pointer in the second quarter and didn't return.

Minnesota went 20 for 22 from the free-throw line. Towns was 8 for 8, and Gobert went 6 for 7.

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Timberwolves take down Suns 120-95 in Game 1 behind 33 points from Anthony Edwards

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Bradley Beal scored 36 points on 6-for-6 shooting from 3-point range and the&nbsp;Phoenix Suns&nbsp;beat the&nbsp;Minnesota Timberwolves&nbsp;125-106 on Sunday to stay out of the play-in tournament and set up a rematch in the first round of the&nbsp;NBA&nbsp;playoffs.

Devin Booker added 23 points and Grayson Allen had 20 points for the Suns (49-33). They built a 22-point lead by the end of the first quarter and never let the deficit drop into single digits after that.

Phoenix finished the regular season on a 10-4 surge and seized the No. 6 seed when New Orleans lost. After entering the final day in a three-way tie for the Western Conference lead with Denver and Oklahoma City, Minnesota took the No. 3 seed when the Nuggets and Thunder each won.

The Wolves will host Game 1 of the best-of-seven series next weekend. After losing all three games to the Suns this season, they’ve got a lot of work to do next week.

Rudy Gobert had 21 points and seven rebounds and Mike Conley scored 17 points for the Wolves, who matched their season worst with 24 turnovers and gave up 13 offensive rebounds to the Suns in this lackluster performance. They fell to 32-4 when shooting 50% or better.

The Suns, who held out sixth-man Eric Gordon because of a migraine headache, served notice that they’ll pose a fierce challenge in the first round for the Wolves, pestering them into poor decisions with the ball and checking the NBA’s best defense with a hot shooting start.

As coach Chris Finch was hollering at the officials late in the second quarter for an early foul discrepancy the Wolves felt was unfair, Beal taunted Finch as he jogged by the bench. Finch jawed right back, and Edwards quickly came to his coach’s defense by giving Beal a shove. The two guards, who were both given technical fouls, were separated by their respective teams before they did any damage.

Finch got a technical in the first quarter for arguing about a charging foul on Towns for pivoting elbow-first into Durant in the post.

Even before this, the Suns had the Wolves’ attention. Their worst offensive game (87 points scored) and worst defensive game (133 points allowed) of this season both came against the Suns.

The Timberwolves (56-26) still finished with the second-best record in their 35-year history, behind only the 2003-04 team led by league MVP Kevin Garnett that went 58-24 and lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the conference finals.

The Timberwolves declared a sellout for all 41 home games, a feat not recorded since their inaugural season at Target Center in 1990-91. The franchise’s first season was played at the Metrodome.

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Wolves Fall To Suns, 125-106

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Anthony Edwards scored a career-high 51 points and the Minnesota Timberwolves overcame an early 21-point deficit with a dominant second half to beat the Washington Wizards 130-121 on Tuesday night.

Edwards had 30 points in the second half. Nickeil Alexander-Walker finished with 23 points and Rudy Gobert had 19 points and 16 rebounds for the Wolves, who have won four of five and eight of 10.

Edwards credited coach Chris Finch for keeping him focused ahead of the matchup with one of the worst teams in the league.

“He put me in the office 2-3 days ago and said, ‘Look man we’ve got this Washington game, and we need to win it, need to come ready to play and you can’t treat it like any other game,’” Edwards said.

Minnesota has clinched a top-three seed in the Western Conference and has a showdown at Denver on Wednesday with a potential No. 1 seed at stake.

“I don’t even need to talk about how big it is. Everybody knows,” Edwards said.

The Timberwolves and Nuggets are tied atop the West, one game ahead of Oklahoma City. Denver beat Utah and the Thunder beat Sacramento Tuesday night to keep pace.

Minnesota improved to 12-5 without All-Star forward Karl-Anthony Towns. The team announced Tuesday that&nbsp;Towns has been cleared for full-contact, five-on-five basketball activities&nbsp;in anticipation of his return, which could occur as soon as Friday.

A 3-pointer by Edwards gave Minnesota its first lead at 92-89 with 2:04 to play in the third quarter. Before the period expired, Edwards added another 3, scored on a fast-break dunk and fed Gobert for a dunk to push the lead to 99-92.

“We needed all of them, for sure,” Finch said. “The best thing about it for me was they came in the flow. He kept making the right play down the stretch for the most part. He was really finding people. Guys were knocking down shots, too. He was aggressive getting to the hoop. I thought he turned the game around, along with Nickeil, in getting to the basket.”

Edwards scored on a turnaround jumper, Gobert had another dunk and Alexander-Walker scored on a reverse layup for a 10-point lead midway through the fourth quarter.

Edwards’ layup with 2:36 to go and his drive with 1:34 left established a personal best, topping the 49 points he scored against San Antonio on April 7, 2022. His total was tied for the fifth-most points in a game by a Minnesota player. Towns had 62 on Jan. 22 against Charlotte.

“We could have done a little better job getting the ball out of his hands, but credit to him, he put them on his back. (Mike) Conley had a big second half too. There’s a reason they’re one of the best teams in the West,” Washington interim coach Brian Keefe said.

Corey Kispert led the short-handed Wizards with 25 points and Jordan Poole added 24. Washington has lost seven of eight.

The Wizards shot 63% in the first quarter as they went ahead by 21. They led 44-27 at the end of the period, tying a franchise season high for points in a quarter. It was the highest-scoring period by a Minnesota opponent this season.

Minnesota got a dozen points from Edwards but missed 12 of its first 15 shots. The Timberwolves also lost starting center Naz Reid, who was ejected for “unnecessary and excessive” contact after an elbow to the head of Johnny Davis while battling for a rebound.

Among the players out for Washington were forward Marvin Bagley III (sprained right knee), forward Kyle Kuzma (right ankle sprain) and forward/center Tristan Vukcevic (left knee soreness).

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Anthony Edwards scores career-high 51 points, Timberwolves rally to beat Wizards 130-121

LOS ANGELES -- — Naz Reid hit six 3-pointers while scoring 31 points, and the Minnesota Timberwolves capitalized on LeBron James' absence and Anthony Davis' early exit with an eye injury for a 127-117 victory over the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.

Anthony Edwards added 26 points for the Timberwolves, who moved even with Denver atop the Western Conference at 54-24 with their seventh win in nine games. Minnesota didn't waste its golden opportunity to beat the surging Lakers, who played most of the night without their two superstars.

James stayed home with flu-like symptoms, missing his 11th game of his 21st NBA season. Davis then went to the locker room after getting hit in the face by Kyle Anderson while scoring a tip-in basket late in the first quarter.

The nine-time All-Star didn't return to the game. Davis’ left eye already was injured from a hit taken last month in a game against Golden State.

Minnesota blew open a tight game without Davis patrolling the middle, putting up a 46-point second quarter. Los Angeles' supporting cast kept it close in the third, but Rudy Gobert scored six of his 18 points in the fourth quarter while Minnesota comfortably held on. Gobert also had 16 rebounds.

Rui Hachimura scored 30 points for the Lakers, whose four-game winning streak ended with only their second loss in 11 games. Los Angeles also fell right back into ninth place in the ultracompetitive West after finally moving up to eighth on Saturday for the first time since late December.

Backup big man Jaxson Hayes had a season-high 19 points and 10 assists while playing 33 minutes in Davis’ absence, and Spencer Dinwiddie added 18 points and seven assists for the Lakers. D'Angelo Russell struggled when Los Angeles needed a huge game from its No. 3 option, missing 14 of his 19 shots to finish with 15 points and 11 assists.

With a chance to be the No. 1 seed in the West for only the second time in franchise history, Minnesota rebounded from its worst offensive performance of the season in Phoenix last Friday.

Minnesota quickly broke open a close game after Davis left, streaking to a 79-64 halftime lead with Reid scoring 18 points in the second quarter. Reid, who also grabbed 11 rebounds, racked up 46 combined points in the Wolves’ two previous meetings with the Lakers.

Along with James, the Lakers held out backup point guard Gabe Vincent, who only returned from a lengthy injury absence four games ago.

Timberwolves: Host Washington on Tuesday.

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Naz Reid gets 31, Timberwolves defeat Lakers 127-117

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PHOENIX -- — Grayson Allen scored 23 points, Kevin Durant had 22 and the Phoenix Suns raced to a 15-0 lead in a 97-87 victory over the Minnesota Timberwolves on Friday night.

Bradley Beal had 14 points for the Suns, who have won four straight home games. Devin Booker, coming off games with 52 and 40 points, finished with 13 points and 13 assists. His only 3-pointer of the night gave the Suns a 94-72 lead with 4:02 remaining.

Jusuf Nurkic, who was a game-time decision with a left calf injury, played 26 minutes and had 11 points, 15 rebounds and six assists.

The Suns led 32-20 after the first quarter, 57-41 at halftime and were never in danger after that, with Minnesota scoring the final 13 points of the game to make the final score closer. Phoenix (46-31) held on to the No. 6 position in the Western Conference. Minnesota (53-24) is tied with Denver for the best record in the West.

Anthony Edwards struggled from the field, making just 6 of 19 shots and finishing with 17 points. Nickell Alexander-Walker was the only other Timberwolves player in double figures with 13 points. Naz Reid had a team-high 11 rebounds.

Neither team was especially efficient — Minnesota had 19 turnovers and Phoenix had 18. The Suns scored 24 points off the Timberwolves' mistakes.

The Suns won the teams’ previous meeting, 133-115 Nov. 15 in Phoenix — the most points the Timberwolves have allowed in a game this season.

Minnesota is still without Karl-Anthony Towns (left meniscus tear), who the Timberwolves hope will be back before the end of the regular season. He last played March 4.

Each team has five games remaining after tonight. The teams finish the season against each other April 14 in Minneapolis.

Timberwolves: At Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday night.

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Timberwolves Fall To Suns In Phoenix, 97-87

MINNEAPOLIS -- — Naz Reid strengthened his case for the Sixth Man of the Year Award with 25 points and six rebounds, Anthony Edwards scored 19 points and the Timberwolves kept up their push for the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with a 113-106 victory over the Houston Rockets on Tuesday night.

The Timberwolves, who have clinched a playoff berth, tied Oklahoma City at 52-23 with seven games remaining in the regular season. Denver, which hosted San Antonio later Tuesday, began play a half-game behind the Thunder for the top spot.

Houston had a seven-game road win streak snapped and has dropped two in a row following 11 straight victories that brought it back into the playoff picture. The Rockets (38-37) are now two games out of the Western Conference's final play-in position.

Making his sixth straight start in place of injured Karl-Anthony Towns, Reid breathed life into an initially quiet Target Center crowd on Tuesday. The 6-foot-9 center is averaging 13.1 points and 5.1 rebounds and shooting 40.7% from 3-point range this season, all career highs.

His 3 from the right wing with 2:45 left helped stave off a late Rockets rally. Fred VanVleet's 3 on the previous possession had cut the Wolves' lead to one.

Reid recently said it's a personal goal to win the John Havlicek Sixth Man of the Year Trophy. With Kings reserve Malik Monk out for at least four weeks with a knee injury, Reid is on the short list of candidates to usurp him for the award.

Reid entered Tuesday first in points and 3s made and third in rebounds, blocks and steals among reserve centers.

Jalen Green led the Rockets with 26 points, five rebounds and six assists. VanVleet finished with 22 points.

The Rockets led by as much as 11 before the Wolves closed the first half on a 21-4 run. Reid led the way with 17 first-half points, Mike Conley Jr. converted a four-point play on a 3-pointer from the top of the key, and Jordan McLaughlin made a pair of 3s to give Minnesota a 54-45 halftime lead.

Before Tuesday’s game, Wolves coach Chris Finch said he’d like to see his team come out with more of an edge at home. He didn't get his wish. Houston led 23-16 after a quarter and went ahead by 10 on Green's 3 to open the second.

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Naz Reid helps Wolves gain ground in West with 113-106 win over Rockets

DENVER -- — Anthony Edwards scored 25 points and Mike Conley added 23 in Minnesota's 111-98 rout of Denver on Friday night that sent the Timberwolves into a first-place tie in the Western Conference — and the defending NBA champion Nuggets into third place.

The Nuggets (51-23) failed to reach 100 points for the second straight game and fell a-half game behind the Timberwolves and the Oklahoma City Thunder, who easily handled Phoenix 125-108 on Friday night.

The Nuggets were without star point guard Jamal Murray (ankle, knee) for a fourth consecutive game, and once again their lack of depth was exposed as their bench provided very little help in Denver's second straight loss at home.

Nobody missed Murray more than MVP favorite Nikola Jokic, who had consecutive cringing turnovers to end the third quarter and missed 11 of his first 17 shots against Minnesota's pestering double teams before rallying to finish with 32 points.

Rudy Gobert added 21 points for Minnesota, which has won four in a row. Playing on the court where their playoff run ended last season, the Timberwolves took the lead for good on Gobert's alley-oop dunk in the opening minutes and never let up in cruising to their biggest victory of the season.

After going 15-2 coming out of the All-Star break, the Nuggets find themselves in a sudden slump with back-to-back losses at home for the first time all season. They lost to Phoenix 104-97 on Wednesday night.

Before the game, Nuggets coach Michael Malone hinted Murray might also miss the Nuggets’ Sunday matinee against the Cleveland Cavaliers, but he said he wasn’t worried that his star point guard would be out for much longer.

“I do think he will be back on the court before the playoffs start” in mid-April, Malone said.

By the time he returns, the Nuggets might find the coveted No. 1 seed they rode to their first NBA title last summer out of reach as they seek to repeat.

Behind 13 early points from Jaden McDaniels, the Wolves grabbed a 62-43 halftime lead and were never threatened after the break.

The teams play again in Denver on April 10.

Timberwolves: Host Chicago on Sunday night.

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McDaniels, Edwards lead surging Timberwolves past Nuggets 111-98 and into 1st-place tie in West

MINNEAPOLIS -- — Naz Reid had 21 points and 10 rebounds and Jaden McDaniels added 20 points to help the Minnesota Timberwolves overcome a sluggish start Wednesday night to beat the NBA-worst Detroit Pistons 106-91.

Kyle Anderson scored 14 points off the bench to help offset a quiet nine points by All-Star Anthony Edwards for the Wolves (50-22), who entered the night in third place in the Western Conference with one more loss than Denver and Oklahoma City. Both the Nuggets and Thunder played later Wednesday.

The Wolves hit the 50-win mark for just the fifth time in their 35 seasons, matching the franchise's third-highest total with 10 games to go. Minnesota's all-time best record was 58-24 in 2003-04.

Cade Cunningham scored 32 points for the Pistons (12-61), who lost their eighth straight. With nine games to go, they've got the fourth-most losses in the franchise's 76-year history. The ignominious record (16-66) was set in 1979-80.

The Wolves improved to 40-4 when allowing less than 110 points and 7-3 without All-Star Karl-Anthony Towns, who's recovering from a torn meniscus in his left knee.

Edwards was largely disengaged, whether it was the defense by rookie Tosan Evbuomwan or simply a lifeless opponent on the other side at the end of a homestand after high-energy games against Denver, Cleveland and Golden State. Still, after being swept last season by a 65-loss Pistons team, this recovery from a rough first half was an encouraging sign for a Minnesota team with much bigger goals.

The Pistons ruled out seven players with injuries, with guard Jaden Ivey the latest to land on the list with a sore left knee. Coach Monty Williams sent out his 34th different starting lineup in their 71st game, with Chimezie Metu taking the floor for just his fifth game with the club and Evbuowman getting the rare start. The Pistons have used 30 players this season, tied with Houston (2020-21) for the most in a season in NBA history.

This will be the fifth straight year without Detroit in the playoffs. The last time the Pistons won a series in the playoffs was 2008, when they beat Orlando in the second round to advance to their third straight conference finals under coach Flip Saunders.

Saunders, who died of cancer at age 60 in 2015, was also the coach the last time the Wolves won a playoff series in 2004. They beat Sacramento in the second round to reach the conference finals, their lone appearance in the 35-year history of the franchise.

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Timberwolves beat Pistons 106-91 to hit 50-win mark for 5th time in franchise's 35 seasons

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