Anthony Edwards continued his playoff dominance on Saturday, leading the Minnesota Timberwolves to a 106-99 win over the Denver Nuggets. No matter who the Nuggets assigned as defender, Edwards was money from all over the floor. Still, his 43-point night didn't come without obstacles, such as the controversial technical foul he received late in the third quarter. Many argued that there should have been no call, and now, a recent update shows that the league seems to agree with the general public's sentiments.
The NBA announced that Edwards’ technical foul was rescinded, per ESPN's Dave McMenamin.
It all happened with a minute and a half remaining in the third. Edwards found himself holding the ball in the corner. Sensing a mismatch with Reggie Jackson as his defender, the Timberwolves star proceeded to back his opponent down, eventually resulting in a made layup.
Edwards then gave Jackson a little staredown, and the refs weren't having it. Once the technical foul was called, the entire Minnesota side was in disbelief. Even announcers such as Reggie Miller were in disagreement over the whole thing.
“Oh, come on, man! No way!” Miller said during the broadcast. “…Man we're in the second round of the playoffs! Emotions are always gonna be high…That's just a look! Come on! That's a bad technical!”
With the call being revoked, Timberwolves fans can now breathe a sigh of relief. And regardless, the technical was nothing to Antman, whose momentum could not be stopped the entire night.
Anthony Edwards and the Timberwolves take Game 1
Right off the bat, Minnesota started strong. Edwards and Co. scored the first nine points of the game before Denver found themselves on the scoreboard. The Timberwolves increased their lead to double-digits, but their opponents managed to storm back. By the end of the first quarter, Denver clung to a two-point advantage.
For most of the second and third quarters, the Nuggets held on to a small lead. Unfortunately for those watching in Ball Arena, the Timberwolves would catch up and seal the game with a fourth-quarter run. As the score was tied at 84 apiece with 6:24 remaining in the game, Naz Reid suddenly scored 10 straight points, while Rudy Gobert added baskets of his own to give Minnesota a comfortable cushion.
This was followed by a difficult fadeaway from Edwards that had the Denver crowd groaning in despair. A final rally by Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. trimmed the point differential, but Antman would seal the series opener with a coast-to-coast layup.
Anthony Edwards' 43 points sprouted from a 58.6% field goal percentage. The 22-year-old also shot 42.9% from downtown. Karl-Anthony Towns added 20 points, while newly-crowned Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid contributed 16 points off the bench.
The Timberwolves look to continue their undefeated playoff run during Game 2 on Monday.
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