The Timberwolves delivered no miraculous fourth-quarter comeback on Friday night in Memphis, not like they produced in victories over Houston and New York this past week.
This time, the Grizzles' 23-point, fourth-quarter lead proved much too much in their 120-108 victory at FedEx Forum.
The Grizzlies now have won 17 of their last 20 games against the Wolves at home in Memphis.
The Wolves' last three victories all came after they trailed by double digits in the fourth quarter, but the closest they never got closer than double digits in the final 12 minutes this time. They trailed the Knicks at home Wednesday by 13 points with fewer than 10 minutes left and won by a point.
The Wolves briefly led, 81-80, with three minutes left in the third quarter, but Memphis' 15-3 run that ended the third quarter and began the fourth turned that one-point deficit into a 97-84 lead early in the fourth quarter.
Wolves star center Karl-Anthony Towns' 30-point, 15-rebound night and rookie sensation Anthony Edwards' 22-point game weren't nearly enough on the first night of back-to-back games that finish Saturday at Philadelphia.
Big man Jonas Valanciunas led the Grizzlies with 19 points and 11 rebounds.
The Wolves trailed 15-8 and 19-12 early before the Wolves used the first of several runs that got them into, or kept them in, the game.
The first was a 8-0 burst that brought them back almost even before the Grizzlies pushed their lead to as much as 52-39 midway through the second quarter.
But the Wolves' 17-6 run after that helped pull them within 68-64 by halftime.
When they fell behind by seven points again, Towns and Edwards combined for four consecutive third-quarter 3-pointers, which were Towns' first 3s of the game.
On a Friday night when guard Josh Okogie returned to action after five games away, the Wolves played on without point guard Ricky Rubio.
Rubio didn't play because of back spasms that caused the team to list him pre-game as questionable to play.
Coach Chris Finch called it a "residual thing" from Wednesday's home victory over New York during which Rubio was hit in the back. He went through morning shootaround and participated in pregame warmups to see if he could get is loosened up before he was scratched and Jordan McLaughlin inserted into the night's starting lineup.
It was McLaughlin's third career NBA start and his first this season. Before Friday's game, he had averaged 19.7 points, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals in the last four games since he returned from being sidelined by the league's health and safety protocols.
Okogie missed the last five games because of the same reason. He entered the game with 4:12 left in the first quarter of a one-point game with his team leading 22-21.
His presence gives Finch another defensive stopper at the point of attack, along with rookie Jaden McDaniels.
Finch attribute some of his team's recent second-unit struggles to the lack of a lockup defender after McDaniels moved into the starting lineup and Okogie was sidelined.
The last time these teams played back in January, Wolves starter McDaniel wasn't in the rotation and Edwards and Jaylen Nowell were both in the second unit.
On Thursday, Edwards was named the Western Conference's Rookie of the Month for March after he averaged 24.2 points during it. That's the third-best in a calendar month by a teenager in NBA history.
The other two who did so: One guy named LeBron James, the other Carmelo Anthony.
Not that either the award nor that fun fact means much to Edwards himself.
"No man, because I don't think we were above .500 in March, wins and losses," Edwards said at Friday's morning shootaround. "I mean, if we're winning. That's different. Other than that, it's just numbers."
He was asked if he judges progress in his rookie season month to month, week to week or day to day?
"I don't know, this is my first year," he said. "I don't really know how to take it. I should just be ready to play when it's game day."
On Friday, Edwards had 14 of his points by halftime and he had six of his assists, too.
When he was asked if he knows what kind of award he gets for Rookie of the Month, he said, "No, I don't have a club. I think it's just an announcement maybe."
When told it's a nice little glass award he'll be presented before a home game sometime soon, he said, "I'll probably give it to my uncle. He keeps all my awards and stuff."
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The Star Tribune did not travel for this event. This article was written using the television broadcast and video interviews before and/or after the event.
