Timberwolves roll over the Lakers 117-95 in Game 1 of NBA playoff series

LOS ANGELES – Sometimes the worst thing the Timberwolves can do is take a large lead.

The ghost of playoffs past (their series in 2022 against Memphis) and the remnants of a recent regular-season collapse against Milwaukee still linger in the minds of the fan base.

Along those lines, the Wolves took a 27-point lead Saturday in the third quarter of Game 1 in their series against the Lakers and started cutting into the lead early in the fourth quarter.

But there would be no disaster, as the Wolves regrouped and came away with an impressive 117-95 victory to steal home-court advantage.

If the Wolves are going to win the series, they will need big nights from their supporting cast, and along those lines, Naz Reid and Jaden McDaniels delivered. McDaniels (11-for-13 shooting) turned in a team-high 25 points while Reid (8-for-12) had 23 points off the bench. They helped the Wolves erase a first-quarter deficit and turn the game on its head in the second quarter.

Then in the third, Anthony Edwards joined them with nine of his 22 points. Edwards nearly had a triple-double with nine assists and eight rebounds. Luka Doncic had 37 points for the Lakers, but the Wolves limited all others not named Doncic, including LeBron James, who finished with 19. The Lakers shot just 40% while the Wolves shot 51%.

The Wolves weathered the storm early in the fourth after the Lakers cut the lead to 12 when Edwards returned after exiting late in the third quarter because of an injury. An Edwards three helped get the lead back to 16 and the Wolves started getting stops after the Lakers went on an offensive tear to get back in the game.

The Wolves pushed it back to 19 as Reid, who had left the game momentarily after taking a hard fall, hit a three. Donte DiVincenzo sent fans to the exits after the Lakers committed a careless turnover on an inbounds pass and he glided in for a dunk with 4:41 to play.

On the first play of the game, Doncic hunted a mismatch on Rudy Gobert and got a foul as he drove to the hoop. This set the tone for a 15-7 Lakers lead in the opening minutes, as the Wolves looked unfocused to start. They committed four turnovers (Julius Randle had two) and allowed three offensive rebounds that the Lakers converted into eight points. Doncic had nine points during that early run. He finished the first quarter with 16 points as the Lakers led 28-21.

The Wolves got five early points from Jaden McDaniels, who hit his first corner three of the night, while Edwards got downhill for six points at the rim. He didn’t attempt a three in the quarter. James finished the quarter scoreless on only two shot attempts. The Lakers were 7-for-12 from three-point range, 2-for-11 from two-point range.

Doncic sat to open the second, and the Wolves took advantage. McDaniels had seven points as the Wolves opened on a 12-2 run, forcing a Lakers timeout with 9:15 to play. Reid also hit a three during the run. Reid was just heating up. The Wolves continued their run even when Doncic returned, as they blocked James twice at the rim on consecutive possessions (Reid then Gobert).

That came between a pair of threes for Reid, who was up to 13 points as the Wolves led by 13, 47-34, forcing another Lakers timeout. Edwards returned to the game for the Wolves and took just one shot, but the team’s supporting cast was carrying its weight. In all, the Wolves began the second quarter 26-6.

The officials finally called the Lakers for their first foul of the night with 4:09 to play in the second quarter, and Wolves coach Chris Finch held up both of his arms and appeared to smile in a sarcastic celebration of that. The Wolves led 59-48 after DiVincenzo hit a three at the buzzer of the half. Doncic had 20 to lead all scorers, Reid led the Wolves with 17.

The Wolves carried that momentum into the third quarter. They opened with threes from McDaniels, Randle and Edwards as they took a 70-48 lead less than two minutes into the second half. The Wolves were 5-for-5 from three-point range to open the third as the starting unit that began the game timid found its legs. Edwards hit his first three three-pointers of the game after not hunting them in the first half. He was up to 17 points as the Wolves led by as many as 27.

Edwards exited the game with 2:58 to play in the quarter after he drove to the rim, missed and fell hard after Jarred Vanderbilt contested a shot. Edwards asked for a sub, then went down the tunnel.

The was in the middle of a 10-0 Lakers run that included a technical foul on Finch. The Wolves ended the quarter ahead 94-78 as they awaited whether Edwards would come back from the locker room. He returned early in the fourth.