MINNEAPOLIS (AZFamily)—The Phoenix Suns fell apart in the second half and lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves 105-93 in Game 2 of Round 1 of the NBA Playoffs on Tuesday night.
The T-Wolves now have a 2-0 series lead. Game 3 is in Phoenix on Friday.
The Suns had a 63-60 lead in the third quarter, but it didn’t last long.
Minnesota went a 10-0 run in the third quarter to take the lead back and push it to 70-63 with 3:30 left.
The Timberwolves eventually outscored the Suns 28-20 in the third, and the score was 78-71 heading into the final frame.
Minnesota turned up the scoring in the fourth, going on an 11-0 run for a 93-76 lead with 7:51 left in the game and that was enough to put the Suns away.
Phoenix is now 1-5 on the season when scoring under 100 points.
Devin Booker fouled out of the game with 2:17 left in the fourth. He finished with 20 points on 6-13 shooting but was just 1-6 from beyond the arc and had six turnovers compared to five assists.
Kevin Durant had 18 points, six rebounds and two assists, while Bradly Beal scored 14 points on 6-17 shooting with four rebounds and six assists.
Grayson Allen was helped off the court and headed to the locker room with 9:17 left in the third quarter after rolling his right ankle, the same one he sprained in Game 1. He didn’t return.
Minnesota’s defense once again swarmed the Suns’ shooters, as Phoenix shot under 45% from the field during the game and were 8-22 from three-point land.
The Suns also had 20 turnovers, which led to 31 points for the T-Wolves.
Jaden McDaniels, usually known for his defense, was a problem for the Suns on the offensive side, leading all scorers with 25 points on 10-17 shooting. He also had seven rebounds and three assists.
Timberwolves went on an 8-0 run in the first 2:48 of the game, thanks to three Suns turnovers.
But the Suns fought their way back, even having a chance to take their first lead of the game with seven seconds left, but Beal missed a fast-break dunk.
Monte Morris made a lay-up on the other end for a 24-21 Minnesota lead after the first quarter, where the Suns only shot 7-20 from the field.
Karl-Anthony Towns, the Timberwolves’ second-leading scorer, was severely limited in the first half after getting three fouls with 53 seconds left in the first quarter.
The Suns got their first lead at 26-24 after a Jusuf Nurkic lay-up with 10:40 left to play in the second quarter.
Phoenix’s lead got up to eight in the second quarter, but Minnesota hung around thanks to 12 points from Mike Conley, and the Suns’ lead was just 51-50 at halftime.
Things got a little chippy when Booker shoved Jaden McDaniels, and he shoved him back with 4:15 left in the second quarter.
Booker was hit with a common foul, while a technical foul was assigned to McDaniels.
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