The Timberwolves had full control for nearly 35 minutes of Game 3 of its first-round series against Memphis on Thursday.
Minnesota big man Karl-Anthony Towns, who was mic’d up during the game, was exceedingly confident and all smiles when his team led 51–34 with less than four minutes to play before halftime. Towns made a statement early in the game that would he would later have to backtrack.
“Yeah, we in Minnesota now… Like I said to the media.. we got to come back to our house now. I’ve only seen them [the Grizzlies] at their house,” Towns said.
The three-time All-Star may have spoken too soon and against Ja Morant and a gritty Memphis team that posted the third-best road record in the NBA during the regular season.
While regular-season stats don’t hold much weight in the postseason, Memphis lived up to the standard it set all season.
After the Grizzlies—who trailed by as many as 26 points—outscored the Timberwolves 42–12 in the final 13 minutes of the game to secure the stunning 104–95 come-from-behind win, Morant ultimately had the last statement in Thursday’s game.
“We in Minnesota now,” Morant tweeted after the Grizzlies’ win.
Towns’s tone postgame had changed considerably from when Minnesota was comfortably in control of the game. “This is a tough one,” Towns said. “We gotta regroup and get ready.”
While Morant did not have his best shooting game, going 5-of-18 from the floor, he still notched a triple-double. The 2022 NBA All-Star, however, said big shots from Tyus Jones and Brandon Clarke helped Memphis secure the win.
“They [Clarke and Jones] pretty much won the game for us,” Morant said after the game. “Tyus is the point god … we’re really the deepest team in the league.”
Now Towns, who finished with eight points and five rebounds, is left to respond in Game 4 after the epic Game 3 meltdown.
