After losing badly on the road in the first two games of the NBA Western Conference Finals, the Minnesota Timberwolves turned the tables on the Oklahoma City Thunder at home on Saturday, blowing them out 143-101. The Timberwolves shot 50% (20-for-40) from behind the three-point line and outscored the Thunder in every quarter to narrow OKC’s series lead to 2-1.
After the Thunder’s Isaiah Hartenstein scored the first four points of the game, the Wolves went on a 34-10 run, and the game was never close after that. Minnesota led 72-41 at halftime, and tacked six points onto their lead in the third quarter and five in the fourth. The Wolves held 2024-2025 NBA MVP and scoring champion, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, to just 14 points on 4-for-13 shooting from the floor, 19 points under his season average.
While this year’s NBA playoffs have featured more road wins (28) than any of the last three postseasons, that has not played into this series. The home teams have played stifling defense and shot quite well on offense. Look for that trend to continue in Game 4.
“The Ant-Man” has stepped up his game to another level each of the last two seasons, showing that he may have an MVP season in his future, as well. Edwards put up 30 points, nine rebounds, six assists, and two steals in only 29 minutes on Saturday. It was his second 30-point performance in the series. It helped that Julius Randle returned to form after a terrible Game 2, pitching in 24 points, four rebounds, and three assists. The T-Wolf bench came through big as well, contributing 66 points. As SGA Goes, So Go The Thunder
Gilgeous-Alexander has been huge in the playoffs, but his team seems to ride his vibe. While he is averaging 30 points, six rebounds, and seven assists this postseason, when he has had a rare sub-par game, so has the rest of his team. Chet Holmgren and Jalen Williams were unable to step up in Game 3 when SGA slipped up, managing only 10 and 13 points, respectively.
When Minnesota hosts the Thunder at the Target Center for Game 4 of the NBA Conference Finals on Monday, May 26, OKC will have to step up the intensity. Otherwise, they will be heading home with the series tied 2-2 and all the momentum on the side of the T-Wolves. Game 4 will start at 7:30 p.m. CST and will be broadcast on ESPN.
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