MINNEAPOLIS — Karl Anthony Towns was back with purpose on Saturday night, and his snarling performance on the court assured the first-round NBA series will be back in Minneapolis for one more game.
Towns scored 33 points and grabbed 14 rebounds, and made two free throws with 4.4 seconds left to lift the Wolves past Memphis 119-118, tying the series at two games apiece.
Game five is Tuesday in Memphis, where the teams split a pair of games to start the series.
The winner of that one has a chance to clinch the opening round playoff set on Friday night at Target Center.
The game was interrupted by a fan going onto the floor in the third quarter as part of the continuing protest of bird flu eradication efforts at farms owned by the corporation of Wolves owner Glen Taylor.
Towns found his peace at the free-throw line. Seventeen tries gave him plenty of time to stay calm.
He roared back with a career playoff-best 33 points and 14 rebounds, helping the Timberwolves recover from their Game 3 collapse and pull out a 119-118 victory over the Memphis Grizzlies on Saturday night to even the first-round series at 2-2.
“Just taking a chill pill, calming down and understanding the next game, there’s another chance,” said Towns, who hit 14 of his foul shots.
Anthony Edwards scored 24 points and backup Jordan McLaughlin, who didn’t play in Game 3, went 4 for 4 from 3-point range for 16 points.
The Timberwolves relentlessly attacked the basket and were rewarded with 40 free throws, 31 of which they made. Memphis was called for 33 fouls.
“I have never seen a more inconsistent and arrogant officiated game,” said Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins. “I’ll take whatever hit’s coming my way.”
Desmond Bane, who hit his eighth 3-pointer at the buzzer to finish with 34 points, kept the Grizzlies going early. Brooks, with 24 points, helped keep them in it late. It was another quiet night for Ja Morant, the star point guard who had 11 points on 4-for-13 shooting with 15 assists and eight rebounds.
“Even after everything, you still only win the game by one. It just shows you the margin of error in this game and then the playoffs, especially when you’re playing a team like this,” said Towns, who took four shots and had just eight points in Game 3.
Patrick Beverley missed two free throws with 43 seconds left. With the Wolves leading 115-110, Morant answered with a layup and Edwards missed a pull-up 3. But Tyus Jones had his 3-pointer fall short with 10.5 seconds to go, and Edwards grabbed the rebound.
He sank both free throws as the crowd chanted, “Wolves in six! Wolves in six!”
McLaughlin’s first 3 put Minnesota in front in the second quarter to start a 17-1 run that maxed out with a 50-35 lead — the largest of the night that quickly got whittled by the Grizzles back down to single digits.
Game 3 was an anomaly, considering the Timberwolves were just the ninth NBA team in 389 situations over the past 25 postseasons to lead by 25-plus points and lose the game, according to ESPN.
And while it fits right into the Minnesota sports scene that has been filled for decades with such disappointment, the crowd didn’t quit trying to create a raucous advantage Saturday.
Troy Hudson and Wally Szczerbiak, standouts on the last Timberwolves team that captivated the town in 2004, were courtside with an endless supply of high-fives for fans seated nearby.
When Towns swished a 3 from the top of the key on the first possession, a jet-like roar followed.
Towns knew how critical the game was and came out with a ferocity suggesting he knew precisely how much criticism he’d been dealt for his Game 3 dud. When he hit his opening 3, he looked down at his hands and yelled to no one in particular about the importance of passing him the ball.
“Exactly what we needed from him,” Timberwolves coach Chris Finch said. “Just aggressive, putting the pressure on them, forcing them to blow the whistle.”
Two more animal rights protesters attempted to interrupt the game in the third quarter.
One woman leaped over the courtside seats of Timberwolves owner Glen Taylor and his wife, Becky, before being tackled by security and carried away.
Her companion remained behind the Taylors and next to the second row of Timberwolves assistant coaches, who helped security wrestle her out.
The group has been protesting the way a chicken farm part of Taylor’s enterprises has allegedly handled an avian flu outbreak.
The highly contagious virus has killed roughly 28 million poultry.
The Associated Press contributed to this story