The Minnesota Timberwolves suffered a world of pain on Saturday but finally pulled off a 97-102 victory over the Golden State Warriors in their third game, who set up a tough, hard-fought game of defense over offense but are now down 1-2 in this Western semi-final.
With home-court advantage back in Minnesota’s favor, the fourth game will also be played in San Francisco on Monday.
Without the injured Stephen Curry, the veteran and battle-hardened Warriors dominated the tempo of a game that seemed like an ode to 1990s NBA with Jimmy Butler moving like a fish in water.
But the Wolves, who had been too naive and lukewarm for the first three quarters, reacted in the last period (24-33) to take the win and regain control of the series.
Anthony Edwards went from the cross of his first half (only eight points) to the face of the second to end up shining with 36 points (13 of 28 in shooting). Julius Randle was also crucial with the first triple-double of his career in the ‘playoffs’ with 24 points (10 of 23 shooting), 10 rebounds and 12 assists.
In Golden State, Butler was sensational but went from strength to strength to finish with 33 points (12 of 26), seven rebounds and seven assists.
In addition, a great Jonathan Kuminga again scored 30 points (11 of 18) and 6 rebounds in a Warriors team weighed down by the elimination for six fouls of Draymond Green with more than four minutes to play in the fourth quarter.
Trench warfare
Used to enjoying one of the best offensive talents in the history of basketball, the Warriors felt Curry’s absence from the opening jump.
However, Butler carried the team on his shoulders with 11 points in the first quarter for the Warriors who, after a very weak start, finished with a 9-0 run to reach the second chapter tied (21-21).
The Wolves also did not have a very inspired start, but they compensated for their 34.8% shooting from the field by controlling the rebounding (12 in total, six offensive).
Three consecutive three-pointers (two from Naz Reid and one from Jaden McDaniels) encouraged a Wolves side that seemed to be warming up (29-39 with 6:29 to go in the first half) but in the end it was just a mirage.
Minnesota only scored one more point in the entire first half, Golden State scratched points and fouls here and there to shape a 13-1 run and Steve Kerr’s team went into the break ahead by a meager 42-40.
Butler (18 points) and Kuminga (12) led a Warriors team that clung to its defense and went 0-for-5 from three-point range, their first half in a playoff game without perimeter success since the first round of 2007.
Even worse was the first half for Chris Finch’s team, with 34.1% shooting from the field (30% from three-point range) and Randle as the leader with 13 points (5 of 14 shooting). Edwards only scored eight points with a woeful 3-of-12 shooting.
Fortunately for all the fans, the game picked up a lot of pace in the third quarter.’Ant-Man’ was resurrected in the Wolves with 15 points and an incredible dunk over Kevon Looney, but the Warriors found the lost success from the perimeter with a solid 6 of 11 in triples (3 of 5 from Buddy Hield) to land in the outcome with a tiny margin (73-69).
A game in the trenches like this required a red-hot finish and Randle did his best to make it so (82-81 with 6:49 to go)
With the Wolves stepping up a gear and getting ahead, one of the key moments of the night came with the ejection for six fouls of Green, who had been the defensive anchor for the Warriors.
A Finch challenge for a foul by Randle on Kuminga ended up being Green’s fifth for a grab on Randle. On the next play, Green went to the street for cutting off a McDaniels penetration when there were still 4:38 on the clock.
The Warriors were showing signs of fatigue – especially Butler, who only scored five points in the last quarter – and the final blow came with a three-pointer from Edwards with 1:19 left to seal this hard-fought but very important victory for Minnesota.
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