Timberwolves Tie Series with Warriors at 1-1

The Minnesota Timberwolves rebounded from Game 1’s 99-88 loss to tie their best-of-7 Western Conference Semifinal series with the Golden State Warriors at one game apiece with a convincing 117-93 victory on Thursday night at Target Center. 

The Timberwolves got out to a quick 13-0 lead, and led 29-15 after one quarter and took a 56-39 lead into halftime. 

In the third quarter, the Warriors cut the Timberwolves’ lead to seven, 62-55, after a Buddy Hield 3-point make. Naz Reid (11 points, 3-for-8 from 3-point range) responded with a triple of his own to get the lead back to 10, and a layup and dunk by Jaden McDaniels and a three by Nickeil Alexander-Walker (20 points, 4-for-6 from downtown in 26 minutes) pushed the lead to 18 at 76-58. The Timberwolves led 85-65 after three quarters and cruised in the fourth, a highlight play coming when Anthony Edwards rebounded a Jimmy Butler missed three and found Julius Randle in transition for a dunk that led to a Steve Kerr timeout. 

Hield, coming off of 33 points in Game 7 against the Houston Rockets and 24 points in Game 1 of this series, made just five of his 14 attempts from the field for 15 points. In the scoring column, the Warriors were led by Jonathan Kuminga’s 18 points (8-for-11 shooting) in 26 minutes off the bench. Trayce Jackson-Davis, the son of former NBA forward Dale, recorded 15 points and 6 rebounds on 6-for-6 shooting in 19 minutes off the bench. Butler, who put up 20 points, 11 rebounds, and 8 assists in Game 1, scored 17 points with 7 rebounds and 4 assists on 6-for-13 shooting on Thursday night. Draymond Green, who registered 18 points on 6-for-13 and four triples in Game 1, scored just 9 points on 3-for-10 from the field (1-for-6 from deep) in Game 2. Brandon Podziemski was 4-for-9 for 11 points. 

For the home side, Randle was splendid in 33 minutes with 24 points, 11 assists, and 7 rebounds on 10-for-17 shooting. Like Alexander-Walker, Edwards scored 20 points (6-for-13, 6-for-8 from the line) with 9 rebounds, 5 assists, and 3 steals. Game 2 was a nice bounce back effort for Edwards after he had shot 14-for-41 over the previous two games.  

The Timberwolves shot 50.6% from the field to 44.7% for the Warriors, and made 16-of-37 triples to 9-of-32 for the Warriors. The Warriors maintained a 42-39 rebounding advantage but committed 17 turnovers to the Wolves’ 12. 

The win for Minnesota (Game 3 goes on Saturday night at 8:30 p.m. on ABC) was vital in providing a boost to the club after Game 1’s struggle of 88 points. It was important for Edwards in particular to round back into form with his performance after struggling so much in the previous two games. He is the engine that makes Minnesota go. 

Julius Randle’s aggressiveness was also welcomed, as when plays aggressively it puts pressure on opposing defenses especially when someone like him attacks the paint. 

For the Warriors playing without Stephen Curry, it is evident how much they miss him in terms of their offensive flow and how other players have to step up and pick up what they are missing without him in the lineup. Surely, a Steph-included lineup would perform better than 9-of-32 from long range. Without him going forward for the next week, the Warriors will need Green to be better and Hield to be better in addition to Butler as well.