Gobert, Towns Dominate in Win Over Thunder As Wolves Secure No. 8 Seed in West

• The Minnesota Timberwolves defeated the Oklahoma City Thunder in their Play-In game
• Three Wolves players recorded double-doubles in Friday’s victory
• The Timberwolves clinched the eighth seed in the Western Conference with the win

Don't count out Minnesota just yet.

The Timberwolves reached the NBA Playoffs as the Western Conference’s No. 8 seed by overwhelming the Oklahoma City Thunder 120-95 in the Play-In round on Friday night.

Minnesota led by as many as 29 points and now faces Nikola Jokic and the No. 1 seed Denver Nuggets in the first round.

Gobert and Towns punish OKC

Rudy Gobert made a triumphant return from exile for punching his teammate Kyle Anderson, scoring 21 points and grabbing 10 rebounds against the Thunder.

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His frontcourt partner, Karl-Anthony Towns, also had a monster game, posting a double-double with 28 points and 11 rebounds, per ESPN.

The Wolves lost the 7-vs-8 game against the Los Angeles Lakers 108-102 on Tuesday, and Edwards was hardly himself in that overtime defeat.

He scored just nine points on 3 of 17 shooting from the field. Edwards was abysmal from beyond the arc, missing all nine 3-point attempts against the Lakers. 

He performed much better this time, recording 19 points, 10 rebounds, and six assists against the Thunder.

Wolves cruise to easy win 

It was close until early in the second quarter when the score was 26-25 in favor of Minnesota.

From there, the Wolves took over. They unleashed a 15-3 run to grab a 41-28 advantage. Minnesota’s lead ballooned to 17 points after three quarters. The Wolves continued their dominance in the fourth quarter, building a 109-80 lead at one stage.

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The Wolves made it a point to attack the basket in this contest, as they enjoyed a 58-30 advantage in points in the paint.

Their defense also was excellent, particularly on Shai Gilgeous-Alexander. The Thunder guard grabbed the headlines two days earlier with his 32-point performance against the Pelicans.

He couldn’t replicate that showing against the Wolves, scoring 22 points on 5 of 19 shooting.

Lakers edge past Wolves

Sports Brief recently reported on the Wolves’ loss to the Lakers.

The Lakers rallied from 15 points down to advance to the 2023 NBA Playoffs.

LeBron James powered the comeback win, scoring 30 points and pulling down 10 rebounds.