NBA highlights on April 26: Anthony Edwards, the new King of T-Wolves

The Minnesota Timberwolves beat the Phoenix Suns 126-109 in Game 3 of the NBA Western Conference first-round playoffs at Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona, on Friday, extending their lead to 3-0 in the series, the first time the team has done so in its history.

Having joined the NBA in the 1989-90 season, the Timberwolves are a young franchise compared with most of the teams in the league and, thus, don't have a very glorious history. They haven't won any postseason series since 2004, which witnessed their peak of advancing to the West Finals under the leadership of regular season Most Valuable Player (MVP) Kevin Garnett.

Today's Timberwolves have a new leader in 22-year-old Anthony Edwards. Though he is not in the MVP race yet, he matched Garnett by scoring 30+ points in seven playoff games after shooting 12-for-23 from the field to drop 36 points, nine rebounds, five assists and two steals in Friday's game.

Edwards' athleticism and power made him a nightmare for both Devin Booker and Bradley Beal to guard. They couldn't even slow him down without help from teammates. When Edwards broke in, the Suns often had to foul him to keep him from scoring buckets. As a result, he went to the free throw line 11 times and made all of his shots there. The Suns tried to have Kevin Durant guard him, but he shot jumpers well within the 3-point line, missing only four of his 11 attempts.

The Timberwolves also dominated the Suns in rebounds on Friday night, despite the foul trouble their front-court went players through. The team's three big men, Rudy Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns and Naz Reid, were all called two fouls in the first quarter. Towns also committed his third personal foul in the third period and his fourth foul in the fourth period. Jaden McDaniels was called for three of his five fouls in the third quarter alone.

Nonetheless, the Timberwolves led 50-28 in total rebounds, including 15-5 on the offensive glass. Goebrt, Towns and McDaniels grabbed four, five and three offensive rebounds, respectively. Their side outscored the opponents 19-8 in second-chance points. Most of such attacks were finished in the paint, where the Timberwolves got 20 more points (56-36) than the Suns.

The Timberwolves had advantages in size, athleticism and big-mend depth, but that's not the only reason behind their dominant rebounding performance. If the Suns' problems in Friday's game were to be described in one word, it would be "sluggish." The team tried different defensive policies to contain Edwards, but their efforts lacked continuity. When two or three of their defenders closed out to contain the ball screen or closed in to protect the rim, the rest of the team just watched their teammates work instead of competing for rebounds.

The Suns were not moving enough on the offensive end either. One thing they did well on Friday was attack with aggression, which resulted in many fouls committed by the Timberwolves. However, that didn't change their repetitive offense, which was attacks off the dribble by Durant, Booker and Beal in rotation. Even a five-out squad doesn't attack well when players don't move quickly off-the-ball, not to mention that the Suns always had players who couldn't stretch the floor, like Jusuf Nurkic and Royce O'Neale on the court.

Game 4 of the series will happen at Footprint Center again on Sunday.

Other games on Friday (away teams come first):

Milwaukee Bucks 118-121 Indiana Pacers

Game 3 of the NBA Eastern Conference first-round playoffs was tied at 118 in overtime (OT) at Gainbridge Fieldhouse in Indianapolis, Indiana, with 6.7 seconds left. Coach Rick Carlisle drew a play for the Pacers to begin their offense in the hands of Tyrese Haliburton from the back court.

Paskal Siakam screened Khris Middleton for Haliburton, who then beat through Patrick Beverley and made a floater at the free throw line while drawing a foul by Andre Jackson Jr. Haliburton made the extra shot, giving his side a three-point lead when there were 1.6 seconds left in the game.

The Bucks chose to trust Middleton, who already got 42 points and 10 points on Friday night, with their final play. He received the ball but had to shoot a 3-pointer over the defense of Aaron Nesmith from the left wing. The ball didn't go into the hoop, and the Bucks lost the game, trailing 2-1 in the series.

Haliburton struggled to make shots most of the of the time on Friday night. He missed 14 of his 22 field goals (FGs), including 11 behind the arc. Nonetheless, he did other work well, including orchestrating and rebound protection, dropping a triple-double of 18 points, 10 rebounds and 16 assists.

The Bucks continued to lack Giannis Antetokounmpo due to injury. Damian Lillard sprained his knee in the first period. He seemed to be in a lot of pain before heading back to the locker room, but fortunately for the team, he came back to play. Middleton saved his side twice before missing the buzzer-beater. He was the one knocking down the two 3-pointers that tied the game at the end of the fourth quarter and before Haliburton's game-winning floater.

Game 4 of the series will take place at Gainbridge Fieldhouse again on Sunday.

Los Angeles Clippers 90-101 Dallas Mavericks

Luka Doncic and Kyrie Irving beat Kawhi Leonard and Paul George in the star duo contest at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas, on Friday, leading the Mavericks to their second straight win over the Clippers and a 2-1 lead in the West's first-round playoffs.

Fairly speaking, Doncic and Irving didn't reach their regular season average performance in either production or efficiency, as the two combined to go 15-for-42 from the field to get 43 points, 14 rebounds and 15 assists. However, in a slow, physical game like the one on Friday night, every point mattered.

Furthermore, Leonard and George were such disappointments. The two had no more than 16 points in combination. Leonard played less than 25 minutes because of the time limit for his injury; George was held back by fouls and made only three of his 11 shots. James Harden, Ivaca Zubac and Norman Powell kept the Clippers together offensively with 61 points.

Game 4 of the series will take place at the American Airlines Center on Sunday.