Anthony Edwards came through with a game-high 29 points, Karl-Anthony Towns regained his form from beyond the three-point arc and the Minnesota Timberwolves stayed alive in the NBA Western Conference finals with a 105-100 victory over the host Dallas Mavericks in Game 4 yesterday (Philippine time).
With their first win in the best-of-seven series, the Timberwolves earned a Game 5 at home, hoping to blaze a trail to become the first team in NBA history to rally to advance after trailing 3-0.
Luka Doncic posted a 28-point, 15-rebound, 10-assist triple-double for the fifth-seeded Mavericks, who won the first two games of the series in a previous trip to Minnesota.
After Minnesota led by as many as 12 early on, the teams battled on even terms for the first 18-plus minutes of the second half, with a Towns three-pointer with 5:41 remaining giving the Timberwolves a 92-90 lead.
The visitors never trailed again, thanks in large part to Towns, whose three-pointer on Minnesota’s next possession made it a five-point game.
When Towns connected again from beyond the arc with 2:54 to go, and Edwards followed with a bunker in the lane 67 seconds later, the Timberwolves had broken things open at 100-92.
A desperation three-pointer by Doncic as he was being fouled with 13 seconds left kept the Mavericks alive at 103-100, but he missed the subsequent free throw.
After a timeout, Naz Reid got behind a pressing Dallas defense for a game-clinching layup with 11.1 seconds remaining.
Edwards’ series-high point total came as part of a near-triple-double. He also found time for team-highs in rebounds with 10 and assists with nine.
After missing 19 of his 22 three-point attempts in the first three games of the series, Towns buried four of five before fouling out with 25 points. He made nine of his 13 shots overall.
Rudy Gobert equaled Edwards’ 10 rebounds while also completing a double-double with 13 points for third-seeded Minnesota, while Mike Conley had 14 points and Jaden McDaniels had 10.
Kyrie Irving was held to 16 points on 6-for-18 shooting from the field, while Jaden Hardy had 13 points, Daniel Gafford chipped in 12 to complement eight rebounds and three blocks, and P.J. Washington added 10 points. (Field Level Media / Reuters)