On April 13, Beijing time, the Timberwolves defeated the Clippers 109-104 at home to advance to the playoffs as the 7th in the West, and their first-round opponent was the Grizzlies, who ranked 2nd in the West. Towns scored just 11 points on six fouls, but Russell contributed 29 and Edwards 30. The Timberwolves also trailed by 10 points at one point in the final quarter, but eventually completed the turnaround. George scored 34 points and lost to the Timberwolves, the Clippers will compete with pelicans and Spurs winners for the final playoff spot in the West.
Statistics
Clippers: George 34 points, 7 rebounds, 5 assists, 3 steals, Powell 16 points, Reggie 17 points, 7 rebounds and 5 assists, Morris 12 points
Timberwolves: Edwards 230 points and 5 rebounds, Russell 29 points, 5 rebounds and 6 assists, Towns 11 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists, Beverley 7 points, 11 rebounds, Beverley 12 points and 6 rebounds
Stars of the Field: Russell and Edwards
Towns got into foul trouble, and Russell and Edwards became heroes of the team, helping the Timberwolves withstand the pressure and beat the Clippers at home to advance to the playoffs.
Game tidbits
Towns received 4 fouls in the second quarter, and the expression said it all! In the first two quarters, Towns shot 0-of-7 and scored 2 points on just free throws.
In the second quarter, a female fan broke into the stadium, tried to stick herself to the floor, and was subsequently sent away by the staff!
At the beginning of the third quarter, Beverley and Morris slapped each other while on the card slot. The referee originally sentenced both sides to technical offenders. Beverley waved goodbye excitedly, and Morris, who had already been a technician, was ready to accept the fate of being expelled, but then the referee replayed and changed the sentence, believing that Beverley provoked the incident first, and only gave Beverly a technical foul.
Beverley's difficult three-point timeout is invalid!
With 7 minutes and 34 seconds left in the fourth quarter, Towns left the field with six fouls!
Highlight moments
Edwards hit a three-pointer to pack the Timberwolves' first seven points!
George responded with a three-pointer!
Super lag! Edwards scored the ball after confronting Zubac!
Russell hit a three-pointer and he scored nine straight points in the second quarter!
Morris hit 2+1!
In the last quarter, Mann flew to the buckle!
Edwards flew into the dunk!
Game review
In the first quarter, Edwards scored seven straight points, George hit a shot and the Timberwolves made a 7-2 start. Reggie scored on a layup, Morris scored five straight points, George hit a three-pointer and the Clippers blasted a 10-0 run. Beverley hit a three-pointer, Reggie and Morris hit a shot, and Beasley also responded with a mid-range shot. Powell scored seven straight points, Towns attacked fouls, didn't score at 0-of-5 in the first quarter, and McDaniels hit a three-pointer. The first quarter ended with the Clippers leading the Timberwolves 26-20.
In the second quarter, Russell hit three-point shots, Reggie and Powell hit three consecutive points, and Russell threw a shot. Covington and Powell hit three-point shots, and Edwards felt hot and scored 8 points in a row. Towns made two free throws to finally break the personal scoring drought, but he also quickly received his fourth foul and could only be replaced. Beverly scored on a layup, Beasley hit a three-pointer, and Russell scored nine straight points to overtake the Clippers. Batum also hit a three-pointer to end halftime with the Timberwolves leading the Clippers 53-51. In the first half, the Clippers' Powell had 14 points, George 9 and Reggie 9; the Timberwolves' Edwards had 15 points, Russell had 15 points, and Downs had just 2 points at 0-of-7.
Yi Bian fought again, and Beverly and Morrisca clashed in the position, leading to the technician. Zubac hooked a shot, Beverley's three-point shot timeout did not count, Zubac hooked another hit, Downs scored a layup, Morris hit a shot, and the two sides drew. Edwards and Reggie scored three points in each other, and George hit two three-pointers in a row. Towns scored on a layup, George hit another three-pointer, Morris scored 2+1, Powell scored on a layup, George made two free throws and the Clippers led by nine points. Beasley hit a three-point shot. At the end of the third quarter, the Clippers led the Timberwolves 84-78, and George scored 17 points in a single quarter!
In the final quarter, Russell and Covington scored on layups, Reid hit a three-pointer, Mann completed a dunk, Reggie hit a three-pointer, and the Clippers led by 10 points. Towns scored three points and left the field with six fouls, Beasley hit a three-pointer and the Timberwolves closed the gap to three points in a 7-0 run. George hit a hit, Edwards scored on a layup and Reid hit a layup. Russell hit a three-pointer, Edwards scored with a dunk and the Timberwolves rebounded by four points. Batum and Edwards hit each other's three-pointers and Russell hit a shot. George hit three-pointers, the Clippers were three points behind, Edwards made two free throws, Beverley made two free throws, Edwards hit two free throws and one shot, George hit three-pointers, unable to return to the sky, and in the end, the Timberwolves beat the Clippers and advanced to the playoffs.
Both sides started
Clippers: Reggie Jackson, George, Morris, Batum, Zubac
Timberwolves: Beverly, Russell, Edwards, Vanderbilt, Downs