Sophomore guard Anthony Edwards came up clutch as his surprising Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the defending champion Milwaukee Bucks on the road Wednesday evening.
With Minnesota up 108-106 and less than 25 seconds left, the team needed a score to put the Bucks away. That’s when Edwards drove on an elite perimeter defender in Khris Middleton and scored the dagger on a beautiful lay-up.
For the Wolves, this could very well represent a signature win after the team lost to the hapless New Orleans Pelicans in its previous outing. Remember, Minnesota started the campaign with a 2-0 record — including wins over the aforementioned Pelicans and Houston Rockets.
Defeating New Orleans and Houston is one thing. Going into Milwaukee and winning wire-to-wire is a completely different story. The Wolves’ victory Wednesday night represented the first time these Bucks have not held a lead at home in 138 games. Think about that for a second.
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Signature win for Anthony Edwards, Minnesota Timberwolves
It sure does seem like things are coming together for head coach Chris Finch and Co. We already knew that the trio of Edwards, D’Angelo Russell and Karl-Anthony Towns is talented.
When the three played together toward the end of last season, Minnesota was a playoff-caliber team. It’s all about seeing the trio together over a long period of time.
Wednesday’s win over Milwaukee added another layer to this. Led by Russell’s 29 points, these three spearheaded Minnesota’s first statement win in eons. Edwards added 25 points while shooting a mere 9-of-24 from the field. But it was his dagger that put Milwaukee away. Meanwhile Towns hit on a robust 9-of-13 shots while also scoring 25 points.
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It was not perfect by any stretch of the imagination. Minnesota shot 29% from three-point range and committed 17 turnovers — seven of which came from Towns himself.
With that said, these are the types of games Minnesota usually gets blown out in. We’re seeing a different iteration of this team in 2021-22 — one that could very well end up with the Wolves playing playoff basketball for just the second time since the Kevin Garnett era.