After a couple days of rest, the Minnesota Timberwolves had the treat of hosting Victor Wembanyama and the San Antonio Spurs on Tuesday night. Coming off of a win, the Wolves were searching to start up a new winning streak post-All-Star break. Behind strong efforts from Anthony Edwards, Naz Reid and company, Minnesota comfortably took down San Antonio.

Moving to 41-17 on the year, each win matters in pursuit of the one-seed. Dominant wins like Tuesday night are essential for building momentum as we near the postseason. Here are our instant takeaways from Minnesota’s convincing 114-105 win over San Antonio.

Anthony Edwards steals the show

Feb 27, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards (5) holds his ankle on the ground against the San Antonio Spurs
Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

 

Despite appearing to roll his ankle in the second quarter, Anthony Edwards still made a statement in the first half. With all eyes on Victor Wembanyama, the Timberwolves’ star reminded everyone just how good he is. Edwards took the game over in an effort to push Minnesota ahead of San Antonio. Edwards closed the first quarter in style, with his two-way play stealing the show en route to 12 points.

Building off his strong opening quarter, Edwards kept his foot on the gas. Ballooning up to 18 points in the first half on 7-14 shooting from the floor. The All-Star guard also drilled two triples en route to leading the Wolves off to a 58-43 halftime lead. Turns out, Ant was just getting started.

Anthony Edwards, despite going down with an ankle injury late in the second, went nuclear in the third quarter with an unreal showing of athleticism and shot-making. Pouring in 14 third quarter points behind deep-range shots and ferocious transition jams, Edwards climbed to 32 points.

As an ascending star himself, it's clear that Edwards viewed this matchup with Wembanyama as a prime opportunity to keep the league on notice. Edwards played just a few minutes in the fourth quarter and finished with 34 points, five boards and five assists helping seal the deal for Minnesota.

Naz Reid steps up in Karl-Anthony Towns’ absence

With Karl-Anthony Towns out on Tuesday night due to personal reasons, it was essential for the Wolves’ to get others to step up in his absence. Sixth man Naz Reid rang the bell for Minnesota. Reid poured in an electric 11 points in the first half. His efficiency rang through again as he started 3-4 from the floor, drilled a triple and knocked down all four of his first half free throws.

Minnesota’s bench scorer concluded the contest with an impressive 22 points. In 32 minutes of play off the bench, Reid was exactly the spark plug Minnesota needed. His scoring has become an essential puzzle piece to Minnesota’s offensive attack. On the night, Reid connected on eight of his 10 shot attempts.

Another big factor behind Reid’s value this season has been his notable uptick in his defensive activity. The backup big came into the game and immediately left his impact on that end of the floor by quickly registering a block. In the first half, Reid was a +16 in just 14 minutes of play. While KAT and Naz bring highly productive offensive talent each and every night, their defensive improvements this season have made a world of a difference for the Wolves.

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Chris Finch in the center, Kevin Garnett on the left, Anthony Edwards and Rudy Gobert to his right.

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Karl-Anthony Towns front and center saying “I’m sacrificing” next to Naz Reid and Devin Booker.

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Gregg Popovich, San Antonio Spurs logo

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Minnesota keeps Victor Wembanyama in check

Coming into Tuesday’s game, the Spurs’ star was posting unbelievable averages over his last 20 games.

Having found his NBA footing, Wemby can be an other-worldly task to defend. Scoring eight points in the first six minutes of game time, it appeared Wembanyama would be in for a big game once again. Halfway through the first, Spurs legend Gregg Popovich pulled Wembanyama out of the game following his usual rotations

From that point on, the Timberwolves slowed him down significantly. Going scoreless in the second quarter, the 7'4″ freak of nature went into the halftime break with just eight points. It took until mid-way through the third frame for Wembanyama to break into the scoring column once again. Wembanyama managed a total of 17 points for the game, with most coming as the Wolves stepped off the gas. As Rudy Gobert spearheaded the challenge of covering his fellow Frenchman, the Timberwolves' anchor showcased once again why he’s the running favorite for another Defensive Player of the Year.