May 21 (UPI) -- Oklahoma City Thunder defenders piled into the paint, disrupting Anthony Edwards and the Minnesota Timberwolves offense in a blowout victory to open the Western Conference finals.
Thunder guard Shai Gilgeous-Alexander scored 20 of his game-high 31 points in the second half of the 114-88 win Tuesday in Oklahoma City. The Thunder held Edwards to 18 points, including five in the second half and zero in the fourth quarter.
"Really good players, you've got to make them uncomfortable," Gilgeous-Alexander said on the ESPN broadcast. "You've got to try to get in their airspace and try to take away their strengths."
The Thunder outshot the Timberwolves 50% to 34.9%, including a 52.4% to 29.4% edge from 3-point range. They held advantages of 54-20 in points in the paint, 12-0 in fast break points, 32-26 in bench points and 31-10 in points off turnovers.
Edwards and the Timberwolves scored the first eight points of the night and didn't trail until the second half, when they were outshot 61.9% to 35%. Game 1 featured nine lead changes and was tied six times.
"It was good to get it out of our system in Game 1," Edwards told reporters. "We'll be ready for it [the Thunder defense] in Game 2. We should be ready."
The Timberwolves carried a 23-20 lead into the second quarter. Star forward Julius Randle poured in 14 over the next 12 minutes and the Timberwolves carried a 48-44 edge into the second half.
The Thunder earned their first lead of the night when forward Chet Holmgren hit a hook shot about 2:24 into the third quarter. The lead changed hands six more times in the frame. The Thunder trailed 60-56 with seven minutes remaining in the quarter, but went on a 17-2 run to take control.
Gilgeous-Alexander scored 12 points in the third quarter and the Thunder carried a 76-66 lead into the fourth. They never trailed again.
The Thunder outshot the Timberwolves 61.9% to 38.1% down the stretch to preserve their advantage. They also hit 6 of 8 3-pointers, compared to the Timberwolves' 2 of 10 clip and forced five turnovers.
Thunder forward Jalen Williams scored 19 points in the victory. Holmgren chipped in 15. Thunder center Isaiah Hartenstein logged 12 points. Randle totaled 28 points for the Timberwolves.
The Thunder will host the Timberwolves in Game 2 at 8:30 p.m. EDT Thursday in Oklahoma City. Game 3 will be Saturday in Minneapolis.