Anthony Edwards scored 40 points, Karl-Anthony Towns added 28 and the Minnesota Timberwolves pulled away late to beat the Phoenix Suns 122-116 on Sunday night and sweep the first-round playoff series.
Edwards scored 31 of his points in the second half and finished 13 of 23 from the field, including 7 of 13 from 3-point range. Continuing his ascent into superstardom, the 22-year-old threw down a powerful, one-handed jam to give Minnesota a 115-111 lead with 2:14 left.
Phoenix would never recover.
The Wolves finished off the Suns despite Devin Booker’s 49 points on 13 of 21 shooting. He also made 20 of 21 free throws. Kevin Durant added 33, but the rest of the team struggled.
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Minnesota won despite coach Chris Finch leaving the game late in the fourth after an inadvertent collision with Wolves guard Mike Conley.
It was a tight fourth quarter and the Suns tied it at 107 on Royce O’Neale’s 3-pointer with 4:30 remaining. Edwards and Jaden McDaniels hit back-to-back corner 3s to put the Wolves up 113-109 with 3:20 left.
The Wolves now wait to see if they will face the Denver Nuggets or Los Angeles Lakers in the second round.
Edwards hit back-to-back 3-pointers early in the third and McDaniels followed with a powerful dunk, helping Minnesota turn a six-point deficit into a 68-66 lead. It was part of a big third for Edwards, who hit four 3-pointers and had 15 points.
Booker responded, scoring 18 points during the quarter and the Suns took a 92-90 lead into the fourth.
The Suns threw various looks at the Wolves in the first half, using five perimeter players at various times to try to pull big men Rudy Gobert and Towns away from the basket.
Booker hit a fallaway jumper at the buzzer to give the Suns a 61-56 halftime lead. Durant led Phoenix with 20 points before the break, while Booker had 17. Towns had 15 for the Wolves.
Suns guard Grayson Allen missed his second straight game because of a sprained ankle suffered in Game 1 that he aggravated in Game 2. He averaged 13.5 points per game and led the NBA in 3-point percentage during the regular season.
Reporting by The Associated Press.
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Anthony Edwards
Minnesota Timberwolves
National Basketball Association
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