04/25/25 11:56:00
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04/25 23:55 CDT Wolves top Lakers 116-104 in Game 3 to take series lead behind
both-ways standout Jaden McDaniels
Wolves top Lakers 116-104 in Game 3 to take series lead behind both-ways
standout Jaden McDaniels
By DAVE CAMPBELL
AP Sports Writer
MINNEAPOLIS (AP) --- Jaden McDaniels scored a career playoff-high 30 points and
spearheaded Minnesota's stifling defense on an ailing Luka Doncic, and the
Timberwolves beat the Los Angeles Lakers 116-104 to take a 2-1 lead in their
first-round series on Friday night.
Anthony Edwards scored 29 points and Julius Randle added 22 points for the
Wolves, who outscored the Lakers 13-1 over the final 4:37 of the game after
Doncic's tying baseline jumper.
LeBron James did the heavy lifting with Doncic playing through a stomach
illness, scoring 38 points including three 3-pointers in a four-possession span
midway through the fourth quarter. But he couldn't find a shot after that,
hitting the side of the backboard with a corner heave with the Lakers down
111-104 with 1:26 left.
Game 4 is in Minneapolis on Sunday afternoon.
Austin Reaves had 20 points on 5-for-11 shooting from 3-point range, where the
Lakers stayed hot all night to stay close --- offsetting 19 turnovers the
Wolves converted into 28 points.
Randle, a first-round draft pick by the Lakers in 2014 who missed the playoffs
last year with New York and has only played in 18 career postseason games, was
especially fired up for his first home playoff game with Minnesota. He went 9
for 10 from the free throw line and hustled all over the floor, leading the
charge in a 56-26 edge the Wolves had in points in the paint.
Doncic was frequently smothered by McDaniels, Minnesota's ace perimeter
defender, and had a particularly sluggish start. Doncic needed a step-back
28-footer with Edwards guarding him in the closing seconds of the first half to
get to eight points at the break.
The Target Center crowd that watched Doncic dismantle Minnesota's
league-leading defense for Dallas in the Western Conference finals last spring
was delighted to see the demonstrative five-time All-NBA pick struggle. He
didn't have much opportunity to play the villain, struggling to create clean
shots and barely bothering to talk much trash.
The Wolves wisely hunted Doncic on the other end of the floor, too, trying to
exploit the weaknesses for a player whose defense is not an asset on a night
when he clearly didn't have all of his strength to begin with.
Rudy Gobert never got a single shot off but was a pest on defense as usual,
poking the ball away from Doncic at the top of the key on one possession in the
third quarter to start a fast break that McDaniels finished with a layup and a
foul on Doncic for a three-point play and an 80-75 lead.
That sequence that had the fans roaring came shortly after Edwards, who
otherwise struggled to finish his drives to the basket, dunked over Doncic
after adjusting the ball in mid-flight to avoid the block.
___
AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA
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