Edwards led Timberwolves to 105-100 win over Mavs

Anthony Edwards scored 29 points, grabbed 10 rebounds and distributed nine assists in leading the Minnesota Timberwolves to a stunning 105-100 victory over the Dallas Mavericks on Tuesday night at American Airlines Center.

With the win, the Timberwolves avoided getting swept and now trail this Western Conference Finals best-of-seven series, 3-1. Game 5 will be Thursday night at 7:30 p.m. in Minneapolis.

Luka Dončić picked up a triple-double and led the Mavs with 28 points, 15 rebounds and 10 assists. Also for the Mavs, Kyrie Irving scored 16 points, Jaden Hardy came off the bench and poured in 13 points in only 12 minutes, Daniel Gafford contributed 12 points, eight rebounds and three blocked shots, and P.J. Washington added 10 points and five boards.

Besides Edward, Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 25 points on 9-of-13 shots in his best game of this series for the Timberwolves. In addition, Mike Conley had 14 points and seven assists, Rudy Gobert finished with 13 points and 10 boards, and Jaden McDaniels added 10 points.

It was a critical short bank shot in the lane and through traffic by Edwards which gave Minnesota a 100-92 lead with 1:47 remaining in the game. Dončić then drew the sixth foul from Towns while attempting a three-point shot, and promptly made all three free throws as the Mavs chopped the deficit to 100-95 with 1:38 left.

The Mavs inched even closer (100-97) on a basket by Irving with 1:02 to go. However, Edwards nailed a three-pointer to pad the Timberwolves’ lead to 103-97 with 38.8 seconds left.

After Conley missed a pair of free throws with 20.8 seconds to go, that left the door open for the Mavs. And when Dončić was fouled while he tossed in a three-pointer with 13.2 seconds remaining to draw the Mavs within 103-100 of Minnesota, Dallas was looking to possibly steal a game.

However, Dončić missed the free throw, and Naz Reid closed out the scoring with a layup with 11.3 seconds left.

“I think at one of the points in the season, everyone thought the world was coming to an end,” coach Jason Kidd said before the game. “But we kept coming to work, we were positive and things kind of turned around for the better.

“But I think that’s just who we are. We’re just about trust, about working and having fun at the same time.”

The Timberwolves came out like they weren’t ready to go on vacation. With Edwards in attack mode, Minnesota led, 27-20, after the first quarter thanks to 14 points from Edwards.

It was a quarter that saw the Timberwolves convert 10-of-16 shots, while the Mavs – Dončić scored 10 points — were just 6-of-21 from the field. Edwards attempted eight free throws in the first quarter and made five of them, and that kept Minnesota upright.

“They’re definitely showing a lot of bodies to Anthony and that’s giving him enough pause,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “Then he gets into over-think mode.

“My thing to him is you be like a tailback. You’ve got to hit the hole harder and quicker. Just get through the hole and once you get to the second-line defense, then they’re at your disposal.”

By the 2:40 mark of the second quarter, three of the Timberwolves’ starters – Edwards, Towns and Gobert – each picked up three fouls. Still, it was a 49-49 game at the half with Dončić and Edwards scoring 17 points apiece.

The Mavs were able to stay even with the Timberwolves despite shooting just 36.8 percent from the field, while Minnesota converted 47.2 percent of its shots. But Minnesota outrebounded Dallas, 23-16, as the Mavs clearly missed rookie center Dereck Lively II, who sat out after suffering a neck sprain in Game 3 on Sunday.

“Any time you’re missing one of your key players, certainly it’s going to change the dynamics of what they can do,” Finch said. “It gives them obviously less size and balance at the rim.”

Maxi Kleber played for the first time since the first-round series against the Clippers and contributed two points in 13 minutes on 1-of-3 shots. In the meantime, three of the Timberwolves’ starters – Edwards, Towns and Gobert – each were charged with three fouls late in the second quarter.

Still, it was a 49-49 game at the half with Dončić and Edwards scoring 17 points apiece.

Overall, the Mavs shot 42 percent from the field and converted 14-of-40 shots from beyond the three-point arc. By contrast, the Timberwolves made 52.7 percent of their field goals and 11 of their 24 attempts from three-point range.

X: @DwainPrice