High-scoring Anthony Edwards, Wolves on quest to silence Jazz

Tue Jan 20 8:51am ET
Field Level Media

Anthony Edwards is playing the best basketball of his NBA career. Now the Minnesota Timberwolves are looking to make it pay off when they travel to Salt Lake City to face the Utah Jazz on Tuesday night.

Edwards, 24, posted a career-high 55 points in a 126-123 loss to the San Antonio Spurs on Saturday. He churned out 26 points in the fourth quarter, going 5-of-7 from 3-point range in the final frame.

His scoring outburst rallied Minnesota from a 25-point halftime deficit. San Antonio went up 69-44 going into the locker room after scoring 48 second-quarter points -- the most the Spurs had scored in any quarter since 1987.

Edwards dueled Spurs star Victor Wembanyama, who finished with 39 points and nine rebounds to help deal the Timberwolves their second straight loss. Wembanyama scored 20 points in the second quarter.

"I loved it," Edwards told the San Antonio Express-News after the game. "I wish we could have just moved everybody out of the way and just checked up -- me versus him."

Overall, Edwards is averaging a career-high 29.6 points per game this season. He is shooting career bests of 50.4% from the field and a 41.8% from 3-point range.

That level of production still wasn't enough to help Edwards earn a nod as a starter for next month's NBA All-Star Game. If he is motivated to make a statement on Tuesday, that could spell trouble for a Utah team that has struggled to defend him.

The Jazz, like Minnesota, are trying to bounce back from a loss to San Antonio fueled by a dominant performance from Wembanyama.

Utah fell to the Spurs 123-110 on Monday afternoon, out a five-game road trip with four straight losses. Wembanyama lit up the Jazz for 33 points on 10-of-18 shooting from the field, knocking down seven 3-pointers.

Keyonte George led Utah with 30 points while Jusuf Nurkic added 20. The duo combined for 11 assists. Outside of George and Nurkic, the Jazz lacked a consistent offensive punch with Lauri Markkanen sidelined because of an undisclosed illness. But Utah coach Will Hardy said he liked the overall effort from his players.

"I think our team continues to show a willingness to share the ball and play as a team," Hardy said on KJZZ-TV following the game. "I felt like there were way more positive takeaways from tonight's game than negatives."

An inability to get stops on defense has been a much bigger issue as the calendar has turned to 2026. In nine of Utah's past 12 games, the Jazz have allowed at least 123 points -- a stretch in which the Jazz are 2-10.

Tuesday will mark the third meeting between Minnesota and Utah this season. The Timberwolves won the first two matchups, 137-97 in Minneapolis and 120-113 in Salt Lake City over a four-day span in November.

Edwards averaged 36.0 points and six made 3-pointers in the two contests.


MIN LogoMinnesota Timberwolves
UTA LogoUtah Jazz

Tue Jan 20 9:00pm ET


Donte DiVincenzo, MIN4.5 Rebounds4.5Rebounds
23.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts23.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
19.5 Pts+Asts19.5Pts+Asts
18.5 Pts+Rebs18.5Pts+Rebs
9.5 Rebs+Asts9.5Rebs+Asts
Anthony Edwards, MIN44.1 Fantasy Points44.1Fantasy Points
29.5 Points29.5Points
3.5 3-pt Made3.53-pt Made
39.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts39.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
34.5 Pts+Asts34.5Pts+Asts
35.5 Pts+Rebs35.5Pts+Rebs
9.5 Rebs+Asts9.5Rebs+Asts
Julius Randle, MIN42.3 Fantasy Points42.3Fantasy Points
23.5 Points23.5Points
5.5 Assists5.5Assists
7.5 Rebounds7.5Rebounds
36.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts36.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
29.5 Pts+Asts29.5Pts+Asts
31.5 Pts+Rebs31.5Pts+Rebs
12.5 Rebs+Asts12.5Rebs+Asts
Jaden McDaniels, MIN4.5 Rebounds4.5Rebounds
22.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts22.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
18.5 Pts+Asts18.5Pts+Asts
19.5 Pts+Rebs19.5Pts+Rebs
7.5 Rebs+Asts7.5Rebs+Asts
Rudy Gobert, MIN31.8 Fantasy Points31.8Fantasy Points
11.5 Points11.5Points
11.5 Rebounds11.5Rebounds
23.5 Pts+Rebs23.5Pts+Rebs
Naz Reid, MIN29.2 Fantasy Points29.2Fantasy Points
14.5 Points14.5Points
6.5 Rebounds6.5Rebounds
2.5 3-pt Made2.53-pt Made
23.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts23.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
17.5 Pts+Asts17.5Pts+Asts
21.5 Pts+Rebs21.5Pts+Rebs
8.5 Rebs+Asts8.5Rebs+Asts
Keyonte George, UTA39.7 Fantasy Points39.7Fantasy Points
25.5 Points25.5Points
5.5 Assists5.5Assists
2.5 3-pt Made2.53-pt Made
35.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts35.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
31.5 Pts+Asts31.5Pts+Asts
29.5 Pts+Rebs29.5Pts+Rebs
9.5 Rebs+Asts9.5Rebs+Asts
Jusuf Nurkic, UTA3.5 Assists3.5Assists
9.5 Rebounds9.5Rebounds
26.5 Pts+Rebs+Asts26.5Pts+Rebs+Asts
16.5 Pts+Asts16.5Pts+Asts
22.5 Pts+Rebs22.5Pts+Rebs
13.5 Rebs+Asts13.5Rebs+Asts

DFS PICKEM


Tue Jan 20

NBA: Suns @ 76ers
Tyrese Maxey, Sixers intend to play 'the right way' vs. Suns

NBA: Clippers @ Bulls
Bulls endeavor to reverse series trend against charging Clippers

NBA: Timberwolves @ Jazz
High-scoring Anthony Edwards, Wolves on quest to silence Jazz

NBA: Lakers @ Nuggets
Lakers hope to exploit absence of Nuggets' big men

NBA: Raptors @ Warriors
Without Jimmy Butler, Warriors begin anew against Raptors

NBA: Heat @ Kings
Heat ready for quick turnaround, hope to exact revenge vs. Kings