Anthony Edwards says he had extra motivation to avoid elimination in Game 4 when he was reminded that he’d never been swept before.
“I’ve never been swept so I took it personal,” Edwards said, his statement marking yet another unavoidable Michael Jordan parallel.
“Not on their home court. Hearing their fans talk trash all day.”
Edwards also praised teammate Karl-Anthony Towns for turning things around to help the Timberwolves avoid elimination with a 105-100 win in Dallas.
Towns struggled so badly in Game 3 that Minnesota coach Chris Finch said “it was hard to watch at times”. But in Game 4, Towns bounced back with 25 points on 9-13 shooting from the field and 4-5 from three.
“He played exceptionally well,” Edwards said. “He came through big time, he’s the reason we won tonight.”
True to form, Edwards picked up from where he left off earlier in the playoffs with teasing Towns about fouling too much.
“What did I tell you about fouling?” Edwards said. “I might beat him up on the bus, y’all.”
Luka Doncic, on the other, took responsibility for Dallas losing the game.
“That game’s on me. Just didn’t give enough energy,” he said. “They won one game. We’ve just got to focus on the next one.”
Doncic finished with 28 points, 15 rebounds, 10 assists on 7-21 shooting.
Game 5 tips off Thursday in Minneapolis.
READ MORE: Anthony Edwards Responds to Going Down 3-0