By Eurohoops team/ info@eurohoops.net
Luka Doncic scored 37 points in his Lakers debut in the playoffs, however, the Timberwolves had the answers.
Minnesota got the 117-95 win with Jaden McDaniels scoring 25 points, Naz Reid adding 23 with six 3-pointers, and Anthony Edwards finishing the night with 22 points, nine assists, and eight rebounds in the first-round series opener for the sixth-seeded Wolves, who have won 18 of their last 22 games.
“I got a great group of guys,” Edwards said. “But it wasn’t tonight. I learned that in training camp. It just takes a minute for us to gel as a new team. It just took a minute for us to figure each other out, and I feel like now we just go.”
The writing was on the wall from the first quarter, with the Slovenian star of the Lakers scoring 16 points, but Minnesota was reacting with a 38-20 second period on its way to the franchise playoff record, which was 21 3-pointers on 42 attempts.
LeBron James had 19 points to begin his 18th NBA postseason.
In New York, the Knicks got the job done against the Pistons. Jalen Brunson scored 34 points, Cam Payne had 11 of his 14 in the fourth quarter, and the Knicks stunned Detroit with a 21-0 run to rally for a 123-112 victory Saturday night in Game 1 of the first-round playoff series.
Karl-Anthony Towns had 23 points and 11 rebounds in his first playoff game with the Knicks, and British forward OG Anunoby also scored 23 points. German guard Dennis Schroder had eight points and three assists for Detroit.