As Anthony Edwards sat in the locker room on Tuesday, he would be wondering just what had happened. Minnesota was going strong. In fact, for the first 36 minutes, they seemed unstoppable. And then the fourth quarter happened. Within 10:36 minutes on the game clock, the Milwaukee Bucks were able to snatch away a 24-point lead that the Timberwolves had created throughout the game, and they left their home arena, Fiserv Forum, with a 110-103 win. At the center of it all was the No. 5 shooting guard where his last 12 minutes on the hardwood were full of fouls, bad turnovers, and missed shots. 

While HC Chris Finch evaporated doubts saying that losing to a very beatable team “Is a bad fourth quarter against a zone defense. I don’t think it’s a microcosm of the season,” Edwards understands the worth of these losses, especially in the final week of the regular season. So, when history repeated itself, the Timberwolves were prepared to show that they indeed learn from their mistakes with the 23-year-old star stating, “Every game we play, 82 games, is a big game. But tonight was a must-win, pretty much.” But the issue is, there are still problems in the locker room.

Tonight’s game was touch-and-go for the Minnesota Timberwolves. Despite starting the first quarter strong, they fell behind at the end of the first half. But soon, the T-Wolves were able to mount a comeback, winning the game comfortably by 16 points. Later, Anthony Edwards, who was pivotal in the Timberwolves’ comeback, revealed what spurred his team into victory. And let’s just say the method the team employed was a little less family-friendly than you’d like.

In the locker room, a reporter asked Anthony, “In the third quarter, really changed the tides. What happened coming out that just allowed you guys to take control the way you did.” According to Edwards, the team motivated themselves through a not-so-usual manner to get back into the game.

“We got cussed out at halftime, especially myself, about my effort on defense. We put emphasis on that side of the court,” Ant revealed after the game. And when a reporter asked whether it was their coach Chris Finch who was doing the cussing, Ant simply replied, “All of them. All of them.” 

On Thursday, the Timberwolves started the game with raging fire. However, they lost the second quarter again with 30-41. But this time, they came alive in the 3rd quarter, opening the second half 26-5 while going on a 17-0 run. They would right the wrongs of the second quarter by outscoring the Grizzlies 52-25 (a franchise all-time record and NBA season record) in the third quarter and ultimately win the matchup 141-125 despite a losing fourth quarter.

Of course, the star to watch out on the night was Anthony. Scoring 44 points on 68.42% of shooting from the field sizzled the path for the team. With these numbers, Edwards made his 8th 40+ point game this season (18th career). Moreover, he is the only Timberwolves player to have 44+ points in game against the Grizzlies.

“He’s Anthony Edwards. He’s one of one,” Randle said of Edwards’s game who kept joking around during his postgame interview, “The things that he does out there is one of one.”

However, his silence in the last 12 minutes is still a cause of concern. Nevertheless, he mentioned, “All I told them to start the fourth quarter is, ‘We been here before. The only thing that can change the game is us fouling. If we didn’t do that, I wasn’t worried.”

With this victory, Minnesota’s records now tie with the Grizzlies at 47-33. Now the pickle is, that if the Timberwolves win the next two games, they are very much in the top-six seeds. In fact, with the West conference’s standings being a mess right now, they might also get a chance to reach as high as the fourth spot, depending on how the other teams play. Unfortunately, if the win even one game of these last two, they directly go to the play-in tournaments.

But the fact that the Wolves slipped up in the first half will still bother them. After all, gaining the lead and getting too comfortable cost them against the Bucks on Tuesday. And when asked about why they slipped up, Anthony Edwards explained exactly what happened.

Anthony Edwards reveals why the Timberwolves lost their lead in the second quarter

The Minnesota Timberwolves blew a huge 24-point lead against the Milwaukee Bucks. This ended their 5-game winning streak and set them back on their quest to clinch a playoff spot. And they came close to a repeat of that tonight. So Anthony Edwards did not shy away from taking responsibility for why he and his team nearly slipped up once again. A reporter asked him what caused the slip. Ant replied, “Myself.”

He then elaborated. “I’m talking about blown game plan, mistakes. Mental mistakes that I shouldn’t be making with five years of experience in the league. I shouldn’t make those game plan mistakes. I’ve got to be better.”

A really mature assessment from Edwards! It takes courage to recognize that you’ve deviated from what was laid out by your head coach. Sometimes you forget that he’s only 23. But we’re sure Chris Finch is glad to have ANT on his side.

Anthony Edwards’ ability to recognize what he was doing wrong was probably why he put 44 past the Grizzlies tonight. And like we said earlier, his efforts were monumental in getting the comeback win for the Timberwolves tonight. But their job is not done yet.

They host the Brooklyn Nets on Friday, and if they want to secure some home court advantage in the first round, the T-Wolves cannot afford to slip up against them. After all, they can only cuss out themselves so many times.