Julius Randle scored 21 points and Anthony Edwards came off ‌the bench to hit 18 points as the visiting Minnesota Timberwolves outlasted the San Antonio Spurs 104-102 in ⁠Game 1 of their Western ⁠Conference semifinal series.

In Monday’s game in San Antonio, Minnesota were bolstered by the return of Edwards, who sustained a bone bruise in his ⁠left knee on April 25 that was supposed to keep him out multiple weeks.

“We talked yesterday that if he [Edwards] was able to go, he was going to come off the bench, and if that, you know, was fine with him,” Minnesota coach Chris Finch said.

“He was ⁠all in, and he did a really good job of not like pushing and forcing things, even though he knew he was on a minutes restrictions. I thought he did a really good job of just staying in the flow.”

San Antonio led by three points after three quarters. Edwards scored 11 of the Timberwolves’ first 19 points of the fourth period before Minnesota reeled off a 7-0 run capped by a 3-pointer by ‌Mike Conley with 4:42 left to build a 95-86 advantage.

Victor Wembanyama’s dunk with 43.6 seconds left trimmed the margin to four, and Dylan Harper’s steal and layup with 30.9 seconds remaining brought San Antonio within a bucket. After a miss by Randle, the Spurs opted not to call a timeout and got the ball to Julian Champagnie, whose 3-point attempt at the buzzer hit the front of the rim and bounced away.

Spurs coach Mitch Johnson said, “Dylan did a good job pushing the ball and kicking it ahead. Julian had a fly-by and had a shot in rhythm. No problem with the shot. That was a great shot. I hope he shoots it every time.”

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Jaden ⁠McDaniels and Terrence Shannon Jr added 16 points each for Minnesota. Naz Reid and Conley had 12 points ⁠apiece with Randle and Rudy Gobert grabbing 10 rebounds each.

Harper led the Spurs with 18 points while Stephon Castle and Champagnie scored 17 each. Devin Vassell had 14 points and Wembanyama recorded an 11-point, 15-rebound, 12-blocked-shots triple-double despite going 0-for-8 from beyond the ⁠arc. Keldon Johnson also had 11 points for San Antonio.

Game 2 will be contested on Wednesday in San Antonio. Games 3 and 4 will be in Minneapolis on Friday and Sunday, respectively.

Knicks blow out 76ers

Jalen Brunson scored 27 of his game-high 35 ‌points in the first half  for the New York Knicks, who remained red-hot by ⁠routing the visiting Philadelphia 76ers ⁠137-98 in Game 1 of an Eastern Conference semifinal series.

The Knicks, who eliminated the Atlanta Hawks with a 140-89 win in ⁠Game 6 of a first-round series on Thursday, became just the second team in NBA history to end one series and begin another with consecutive victories by at least 30 points.

In 1986, the Boston Celtics beat the Hawks ⁠132-99 to end an Eastern Conference semifinal series before routing the Milwaukee Bucks 128-96 in Game 1 of the conference finals. The Celtics went on to win the NBA title.

“I can’t deny that our guys are playing pretty good basketball,” Knicks coach Mike Brown said. “And I’ve got to give them credit, especially where credit’s due. They’re trying to focus ‌on the details, no matter what the score is.”

These Knicks, who won the final three games over the Hawks by a combined 96 points, are the first NBA team to win three straight playoff games by at least 25 points apiece.

Game 2 is scheduled for Wednesday night in New York.