CNN
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The Minnesota Timberwolves made the most of Steph Curry’s absence to level their Western Conference semifinals series against the Golden State Warriors with a wire-to-wire 117-93 win in Game 2.
Minnesota opened the game on a 13-0 run as it took Golden State almost five minutes to register its first points. The lead quickly swelled to 22 points midway through the second quarter.
The Warriors reduced the deficit to seven in the third quarter on a Jonathan Kuminga three, Minnesota’s smallest lead since the opening minute of the game, but then went on a four-and-a-half-minute scoreless run that ended any hopes of a win.
“We made a really spirited run, got it to seven, and then we just kind of lost a little bit of composure,” Warriors coach Steve Kerr said, per Reuters.
“We turned it over right out of that timeout a couple of times and gave up a couple threes where we lost connection defensively. But we learned a lot, and I think this game will help us figure out how to move forward.”
Julius Randle powered the Timberwolves to victory with a game-high 24 points to go with seven rebounds and 11 assists.
Star guard Anthony Edwards – who had to be helped to the locker room with an ankle injury in the second quarter, but later returned – and Nickeil Alexander-Walker both added 20 points
“We watched film yesterday,” Edwards said, per Reuters. “We saw that it wasn’t just that we didn’t make shots (in Game 1), it was more so our defensive pressure and intensity.
“We didn’t bring it. So, we knew we had to bring it today.”
Kuminga had a team-high 18 points for the Warriors off the bench, while Jimmy Butler added 17 points.
Trayce Jackson-Davis had 15 off the bench as Kerr used a 14-man rotation in an attempt to find a solution to Curry’s absence.
The Warriors said Curry has a strained left hamstring and will be reevaluated in a week, meaning he could possibly return for Game 5, which is scheduled for May 14.
“Part of the game plan coming in was to play a lot of people and we did,” Golden State coach Kerr said, per the NBA. “We have to figure out what we’re going to be able to do in this series without Steph. We gave a lot of people a lot of chances and some guys really stepped up.
“We’ve got to figure out rotations and who we start, but they’re going to be a part of it. We’ve got to find some better ways to score.”
The series moves to San Francisco for Game 3 on Saturday.