Minnesota Timberwolves fall to Los Angeles Lakers when determination arrives late in Game 2 of playoff series

LOS ANGELES – The Timberwolves knew the Lakers were going to come back strong in Game 2, especially early in the game. But the Wolves didn’t look ready for the counterpunch the Lakers threw at them Tuesday night.

They fell behind as much as 22 in the first half and never dug out of that hole in a 94-85 loss. The series is tied 1-1 with Game 3 on Friday in Minneapolis.

The Wolves’ supporting cast sparked a Game 1 victory for them Saturday, but the Wolves’ depth struggled to score most of the night. Anthony Edwards (25 points) and Julius Randle (27 points) did most of the scoring as the rest of the team struggled. Nobody else scored in double figues for the Wolves, as they shot 39%. They were just 5-for-24 from three-point range.

The Wolves closed the Lakers’ lead to nine, 90-81, with 3 minutes, 9 seconds to play when Lakers coach J.J. Redick called a timeout. Coming out of that, the Wolves got a stop, but LeBron James stole the ball from Edwards and converted a layup at the other end. Then the Wolves committed a shot-clock violation, had another turnover and Jaden McDaniels committed an offensive foul. Luka Doncic finished with 31 points on 9-for-20 shooting while James had 21.

The opening of Game 2 was a lot similar to that of Game 1, with the Lakers and Doncic controlling the action for a 34-15 lead. Doncic had an easy time finding his shots and getting to his spaces early while also getting to the free-throw line. The Wolves looked unsure of themselves on offense and slow to move the ball. Edwards didn’t touch the ball much in their opening possessions, and the Wolves opened the game 3-for-9 from the floor. He seemed to be favoring his right shoulder after an early-game collision, but he remained in the game.

The Lakers started Jaxson Hayes again at center, but Hayes exited after getting two fouls in five minutes. That didn’t matter in the opening quarter. The Lakers’ defensive intensity shellshocked the Wolves, who looked helpless to attack them. The Wolves went 4 minutes, 37 seconds without a field goal and finished the quarter 5-for-18 from the floor. Donte DiVincenzo finished the first quarter with three fouls.

The Wolves appeared to let the officiating get to their heads early. Naz Reid picked up a pair of offensive fouls in the second quarter to bring his total to three for the first half. The Lakers extended their lead to 22 early in the quarter as James got going. He scored seven points in the opening of the second quarter as Doncic sat. The only consistent offense the Wolves had early on was Randle, who opened the night 5-for-9.

The rest of the team started 4-for-17.

BOXSCORE: Lakers 94, Wolves 85

The foul trouble caused Finch to get into his rotation a little bit deeper for a ninth player Tuesday and sub in rookie Terrence Shannon Jr., who played seven minutes and had two points. The Wolves cut it to 14 when Rudy Gobert stole a pass intended for Doncic and laid it in at the other end of the floor. The Lakers led 58-43 at the half behind 22 from Doncic and 13 from James. Randle had 15 for the Wolves while Edwards had 12. The Wolves were just 2-for-10 from three-point range after hitting 21 in Game 1.

Edwards had seven points to open the third quarter as the Wolves cut the Lakers’ lead to 62-51. But the Lakers responded with a 7-0 run coming out of a timeout to push the lead back to 18. In the meantime, the Wolves still dealt with more foul trouble as DiVincenzo and McDaniels each picked up four fouls.

The Wolves just couldn’t generate offense outside of Randle and Edwards. Those two were a combined 17-for-31 through three quarters; the rest of the team was 6-for-29. As a result, the Lakers led by 16, 81-65, through three quarters.

The Wolves opened the fourth with a 12-3 run as they strung together stops on the defensive end long enough for their offense to get them back in the game. They got the Lakers’ lead under double digits, 86-77, for the first time since the first half.