5 things that stood out from Timberwolves' dominant Game 3 win over Thunder

"(Assistant coach) Micah (Nori) told me before the game, 'Be ready to start the second quarter,'" Shannon said. "It's just a normal feeling because I always work, always stay ready and just be the best teammate I can be during the meantime, and when my name called, do what I do."

Finch said he had been looking to expand his rotation to a ninth man during the playoffs, going with Jaylen Clark in Game 1, now Shannon in Game 3. It sounds like you can expect to see some more Shannon now, too, Finch said after the game.

"We need his physicality out there. Just kind of a different type of player than we have in other positions, so we kind of knew coming into the game that we were going to get to him," Finch said.

Shutting down Shai

NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander looked relatively pedestrian Saturday night. The Thunder star finished with just 14 points on 4-for-13 shooting, six assists, two rebounds and had four turnovers. He posted a plus-minus of minus-32, the worst of the night. After tearing the Wolves to shreds in Games 1 and 2, Gilgeous-Alexander couldn't get going Saturday.

“We were just more aggressive everywhere. I thought we were a little cleaner around him," Finch said. "Didn’t foul. Just our competitiveness was at an all-time high. He’s a phenomenal player, and he’s not going to have too many nights like this.”

Gilgeous-Alexander had one of those nights Saturday. And of note, he only attempted four free throws.

It didn't stop the Target Center crowd from serenading him with "free-throw merchant" chants when he did get to the line.

Julius Randle bounces back

Randle had his first stinker of the playoffs in Game 2, and even got benched for the fourth quarter. It sure didn't take him long to shake it off. Randle hit two quick jumpers for Minnesota's first four points, signaling that he was back to his old self.

Randle finished his night with 24 points on 9-for-15 shooting, four rebounds, three assists and not a single turnover.

"I trust (Finch) to do what's best for the team at all times, I know he doesn't have any ill intent," Randle said of his Game 2 benching. "Obviously, I want to play, but for me, it's about the bounce-back and how you come back the next game. I just wanted to come out aggressive. It's not really that they did anything different or myself, I just wanted to be aggressive."

Another heater from Anthony Edwards

The Wolves were going to win Game 3 if Edwards had anything to say about it.

From the get-go, Edwards was aggressive on both ends of the court. He scored 16 points in the first quarter alone, getting to the rim, knocking down 3-pointers, finding his midrange. Edwards was a pest defensively, getting steals, chasing down loose balls, getting in Thunder players' faces. As his coach Finch put it, Edwards was "all over the place."

Edwards finished his night with a game-high 30 points on 12-for-17 shooting, nine rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals. He was a plus-36, second best of the night to Randle's plus-38. Oh — and Edwards didn't even play in the fourth quarter as his Timberwolves carried a 37-point lead into the final frame. It was Edwards who set the tone on both ends.

Halting the run

Finch said pregame that Minnesota knew what it needed to do in this series.

"We've got to avoid the five-minute meltdown," Finch said. "And it's come at the same time both times. Slightly different catalyst for us, one time it's turnovers, one time it's shot selection, and we need to make some shots, also, to answer some of those runs."

The game was hardly ever within grasp for the Thunder as they trailed by 20 points by the end of the first quarter and 31 points at the half, but there was one point where Finch's message came into practice. OKC dominated the third quarters in Games 1 and 2, and it looked like they might do it again and make it a game when they opened the third on an 11-2 run.

But Finch called a timeout, and his Wolves immediately responded with a 12-0 run of their own. That was the game.

"We’ve had second-half starts like that before when we played really well in the first half," Finch said. "I just thought we were a little sloppy with our passing, a little loose with our defense. You know, these guys came back from — I don’t know — 30-plus against Memphis in this playoffs recently. They’re an outstanding team. They’re not gonna quit. ... It was just a combination of guys really refocused, came out and not just got back into the game, but grew the lead from where it was at the half, so all credit to those guys.”

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