MINNEAPOLIS — The artificial fan noise, music and his face mask couldn't quite prevent Tom Thibodeau's signature gravelly voice from carrying across the court and up to the lower bowl where the media sat, as it pierced through the quiet moments, filling the mostly empty arena.
That, along with Thibodeau's intense sideline demeanor — the griping and gesturing at officials, the folded arms, the pacing back and forth — indicated he hadn't changed a bit in the 27 months he hasn't been the Wolves' coach.
His Knicks, one of the best defensive teams in the league, made life hard on the Wolves. The Wolves played from behind most of the night until Anthony Edwards helped bring them back for a 102-101 victory.
An Edwards runner pulled the Wolves within 98-97 with 1 minute, 48 seconds to play, and after ex-Wolves forward and Thibodeau favorite Taj Gibson responded with a free throw, Edwards answered with a reverse layup to tie the score. Old reliable Gibson tied it back up with a put-back before Edwards decided he wasn't going to shoot it on the next Wolves possession. Instead, he found an open Malik Beasley for a 3 and a 102-101 lead. The Wolves had the ball up one but turned it over before Julius Randle (26 points) missed at the other end, the ensuing scramble for the ball ended in the Knicks' hands, but R.J. Barrett (23 points) missed at the buzzer.
Edwards finished with 24 points while Beasley had 20. Karl-Anthony Towns finished with 18, as did Jaden McDaniels.
The first quarter was a quarter Thibodeau would likely approve. The Knicks' slow pace of play ruled the first, with their top-five defense preventing the Wolves from getting many good looks. Then when the Wolves did get a few at the rim, they couldn't finish.
The Wolves shot just 7 for 26 in the first with New York holding them to just three points over the final four minutes of the quarter. Towns was the only player doing anything offensively for the Wolves with seven points and seven rebounds. No player had more than a single basket as the Knicks had a 26-19 lead after one.
The Wolves' issues didn't stop right away in the second. New York opened on a 10-2 run to extend its lead to 36-21 and prompting a timeout from Wolves coach Chris Finch. The Knicks would extend their lead to 18 before finally the Wolves started turning the tide thanks in part to McDaniels. It seemed as if McDaniels was one of the only Wolves who could hit a shot as he made 4 of 5 from 3-point range in the first half. He hit two straight threes to pull the Wolves within 12 and give them some life. Then the Wolves started getting stops on defense, one leading to an Edwards dunk at the other end as Minnesota closed the half on a 12-3 run. McDaniels had 14 as the Wolves trailed 51-50 at the half. They shot 7 of 15 from 3-point range in the second quarter.
But in the third quarter they could never tie or take the lead as the third quarter resembled more the first than the second. The Knicks were determined to not let Towns beat them and frustrated him from getting the ball and then after he did. The Wolves again struggled from the field in shooting just 7 of 21. Elfrid Payton, Barrett and Randle handled most of the scoring for New York. They combined for 27 of the Knicks' 30 points in the third and they led by 11.
It was a McDaniels drive past Gibson for a dunk that brought life back to the Wolves in the fourth and ignited a 12-2 run to pull the Wolves within 94-92. The run also featured two steals from Edwards before Randle got the Knicks together again with a few buckets. But Edwards was just getting going.
