All-game long, the Minnesota Timberwolves bullied their way in the Valley.
And now they're one win away from the West semis, and 48 hours from possibly ending the Phoenix Suns’ season.
Anthony Edwards scored 36 points and the Timberwolves rode a sizzling third quarter en route to a 126-109 Game 3 romp of the weary Suns, seizing a 3-0 series lead in their Western Conference Round 1 duel.
— Basketball Forever (@bballforever_) April 27, 2024
Wolves take a 3-0 SERIES LEAD pic.twitter.com/ghahcXjI2o
Edwards added nine rebounds and five assists, tying Kevin Garnett with the most 30-point playoff games with seven, in a wire-to-wire Timberwolves win.
Minnesota shot 7-of-10 beyond the arc in a remarkable shooting display with Nickeil Alexander-Walker scoring 12 points--all on threes--in a dominating 36-20 third quarter.
Wolves on a 20-6 run... seeking a 3-0 series lead on ESPN 🍿 pic.twitter.com/sXcsMKHaZj
— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2024
The third-seeded T-Wolves have now outscored the sixth-seeded Suns, 95-61, in the third quarter of the first three games of this series.
Minnesota's twin towers of Karl Anthony-Towns and Rudy Gobert collected double-double outings, with KAT registering 18 markers and 13 rebounds and Gobert tallying 19 points and 14 boards.
Wolves lead by 11 in the 3Q on ESPN pic.twitter.com/Tp6jdmCVRX
— NBA (@NBA) April 27, 2024
Mike Conley and Naz Reid also came up with solid contributions with a combined 28-point outing and five triples.
With a +15 advantage in points off three-pointers, the Timberwolves outrebounded the smaller Suns, 50-28, and made living inside with a 56-36 paint point domination.
Kevin Durant led the way for the Suns with 22 points, Bradley Beal added 19 and Eric Gordon chipped in 11.
The Suns actually outscored the Timberwolves in the fourth, 36-31, but ran out of time after and fell to 0-3 hole for the first time since the 2008 playoffs.
No team in NBA history has overcome that hole and squads that are up 3-0 in a best-of-7 series are 151-0 all-time.
But the three-headed monster of Durant, Booker, and Beal needed to overcome history to overcome this tough, gritty Minnesota side.
Game 4 of the series is on April 29, Monday, 9:30 a.m. It will air LIVE on One Sports and the Pilipinas Live app.
