Wolves lament failure to execute late in Game 1 loss to Mavs - ESPN

MINNEAPOLIS — There were two words that Minnesota Timberwolves coach Chris Finch used to describe what cost his team in its 108-105 loss to the Dallas Mavericks in Game 1 of the Western Conference finals Wednesday.

«No composure,» Finch said.

The Wolves committed five of their 10 turnovers as a team in the final frame, when the Mavs outscored them 10-3 in the final 3 minutes, 37 seconds to erase what was a four-point lead for Minnesota.

«We haven't really closed quarters very well, closed halves very well over the last handful of games,» Finch continued. «It cost us a game in the Denver series. It certainly had an impact on this game tonight, too. We've got to be better in clutch moments.»

The Wolves' late mistakes erased an inspiring rally in which they had gone on a 13-1 run over a 4:01 span in the middle of the fourth to turn an eight-point deficit into a four-point cushion.

First, Dereck Lively II grabbed an offensive rebound off a Kyrie Irving missed layup with nobody boxing out the Mavs rookie center. He pitched the ball back out to an open Luka Doncic for 3.

Three straight turnovers followed shortly thereafter for the Wolves. Jaden McDaniels dribbled toward the baseline with nowhere to go, jumped and had to throw the ball back inbounds, where Doncic easily picked it off for a steal that ignited a break that ended with an open corner 3-point make by P.J. Washington.

Next, Karl-Anthony Towns cleaned up a Mike Conley missed 3 by dunking in the putback, but he was called for offensive goaltending for touching the ball when it was still in the cylinder — a call that was backed up by the video replay center in Secaucus, N.J.

Finally, Conley — with the Wolves still only down by two — threw a lob to Rudy Gobert in traffic