Watch: Anthony Edwards leads 14-2 first-quarter run

Edwards scored nine points during a 14-2 run in the middle of the first quarter, a six-minute stretch in which the Mavericks’ only points came from a pair of Luka Doncic free throws. The Timberwolves guard finished the first frame with 14 points to easily lead all scorers.

Beyond his scoring, Edwards piled up fouls on the Mavericks, getting to the line for eight first-quarter free throws. The only thing he didn’t do was make the freebies, missing a pair on one trip and shooting 5-for-8 overall.

The only thing that kept Dallas close was some big shots from little-used bench players — and two bad fouls on Karl-Anthony Towns. Jaden Hardy and Josh Green both made three-pointers in the final 1:30 of the quarter, then Green drew a foul with 0.2 seconds left and hit both foul shots.

Before Hardy’s shot, Towns committed a foul far from the basket. Then he plowed into Maxi Kleber for an offensive foul at the other end. Along with Towns’ historically bad shooting in the Western Conference Finals, he’s also been getting in foul trouble with ill-advised reach-ins and charges.

Thanks to Edwards, Minnesota finished the quarter with 27 points. Thanks to Towns, Dallas got up to 20.