Memphis Grizzlies vs Minnesota Timberwolves: The hosts cannot lose their second home game

The desire to play offensively without defense did not work out well for this Memphis team, and as a result, the Timberwolves have already eliminated their opponents at the end of the regular season. A second mistake could be fatal for the series.

A very buoyant start to the first game showed right away that Taylor Jenkins' team decided to play from the offensive end. With a full rotation and given that the team was in fourth place in that regard at the end of the season, the chosen plan is understandable.

Overall, the game was rather mixed for Memphis, with Ja Morant, Dillon Brooks, Desmond Bane, and Jaren Jackson Jr. all having very good games, but Steven Adams, in this starting rotation, was missing. Adding to that was the poor play of the guys coming off the bench for the Grizzlies.

In the end, the visitors failed to catch up, as well as completely failed to contain their opponent's attack from the perimeter; conclusions must be drawn. For the home team, a second home-court loss could be the irreversible loss in this series.

The Timberwolves, after beating the Clippers, decided not to stop. Chris Finch's team arrived in Memphis not the favorites, especially with Karl-Anthony Towns' lackluster play-in performance.

But once it became clear that the home team was offering to play Minnesota's favorite version, in which the offense decides everything, the visitors felt comfortable. 74 points in the first quarter from the teams, of which the Timberwolves scored 41 points, is direct evidence of that.

Towns was already looking like himself, but it was not his 29 points that decided the outcome of this game, but the very confident play of the Wolves' young and rising star. Anthony Edwards scored 36 points in 40 minutes of playing time, making 52.2 percent from the field, hitting 4-of-11 from beyond the arc, and never missing a shot (8-of-8). They also benefited from reliance on offensive rebounds from beyond the arc. But that might not happen again today, and it won't be easy to beat the home team in the paint.

The first game turned out to be completely without any introduction or scouting. The visitors threw away 41 attempts from beyond the arc, scoring 16 of them, and the lack of good defense by the hosts against these attacks was unexpected. The visitors' two main stars produced a solid game, but the home team's stars played with confidence as well, but the Memphis bench could not compete fully with Minnesota's backups: 43 points from the visitors' reserves, against 32 points from the home team.

The teams won't be able to turn into super defensive teams tonight, so the total won't be low, but there shouldn't be such connivance for long-range attacks, and Memphis feel great in the paint and should take advantage of it. So a win for the home team and Total Over to consider.

• Total Over (239.0) for 1.74;
• Each Team Will Score Over 114.5 - Yes for 2.04;
• Memphis to win by 6-10 points for 4.74.

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