Five takeaways from the Minnesota Timberwolves’ 130-117 victory over the Grizzlies Saturday at FedEx Forum in Game 1 of their first-round Western Conference playoff series: 1. Anthony Edwards was ready for his close-up There were a couple of lists waiting for Timberwolves wing Anthony Edwards, onto either of which he could have scribbled his name. There was this one: Kevin Garnett, 21 points and an L; Stephon Marbury, 28 and an L; Tom Gugliotta, 11 and an L; Andrew Wiggins, 18 and an L; and Karl-Anthony Towns, 8 and an L. That’s a list of young Wolves across franchise history and how they did in their playoff debuts. Some scored well, all lost. (You don’t see Christian Laettner, Isaiah Rider, Kevin Love or Ricky Rubio on that list because they never reached the playoffs with Minnesota.) Then there is this list: Luka Doncic (42 points in 2020), John Williamson (38 in 1979), George Mikan (37 in 1949) and now Edwards. With 36 points in the first postseason of his young career, the No.1 overall pick in the 2020 NBA Draft pulls into a four-way, fourth-place tie with Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Julius Erving, Derrick Rose and er, Gary Brokaw for most points in a playoff debut. Edwards hit four of his 11 3-point shots, all eight of his free throws and had six assists, two blocks and one steal. He also picked up the W, which is about as un-Timberwolves-like as it gets at this time of year. Nine times previously in its first 32 seasons, Minnesota made it to the playoffs. Eight times, it was not only ousted in the first round, it lost each playoff opener. Only in 2004 – the one year Garnett, Latrell Sprewell, Sam Cassell and the rest won a couple series – did the Wolves show up for their first game and not immediately dig themselves a hole. Now they’re 1-0 in a best-of-seven for the second time, and they owe much of it to the 20-year-old “Ant Man” from Atlanta. For all the people who showed up or tuned in Saturday afternoon to see the amazing Ja Morant, Memphis’ dynamic All-NBA point guard, a whole bunch got a marvelous spring introduction to Edwards. Morant sputtered at various points, bothered by the Wolves defense and a lack of flow with his teammates. Half of his 32 points came from the foul line, the one place on the floor he’s not going to incite the Memphis fans. Edwards, as explosive as the Grizzlies guard if less frequently, outplayed Morant while logging heavy minutes as the Wolves’ primary ballhandler. He earned praise from coach Chris Finch not just for his production but for how judicious he was in picking, rather than forcing, his spots. “I told him to be him,” Towns said of a pregame chat the two had. “Be that guy. I just see so much potential and talent for all he can be in this league, never mind for us.” “Just trusting myself,” said Edwards, who hit almost 44% of his 3-pointers against Memphis in the regular season. “I know my shots.” The Wolves didn’t just set a franchise record for most points in a playoff game. Their 130 was the most in regulation, on the road, in a 1 victory since New York won in Cleveland 132-114 on April 12, 1978, according to the Associated Press. How long ago was that? Earl Monroe, Spencer Hayward and Phil Jackson (yes, that Phil Jackson) played in that game. 2. Jaren Jackson Jr. needs to stay in his lane Jackson, the Grizzlies’ aggressive, fourth-year big man, led the NBA with 2.3 blocks per game and will show up in the balloting results for Defensive Player of the Year. One of the factors in his heightened impact against opposing scorers has been his improved ability to play D without fouling. Heckuva lot of good that does him or the Grizzlies if Jackson is picking up needless fouls on offense. Two of his five fouls came on the offensive end, including his third that sent him to the bench after just two minutes in the second quarter. His fifth came when he banged into Minnesota’s Taurean Prince 38 seconds into the fourth. Those fouls did two things, neither of them good for Memphis: Limited Jackson, who otherwise blocked seven shots, to a mere 24 minutes. It also had Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins sending center Steven Adams back into the , creating bad matchups with Towns and the Wolves. 3. Keep those challenges dry, please Both coaches used their challenges, both used them earlier than you’d expect – especially in a playoff game – and both were unsuccessful. Minnesota’s Chris Finch went to the videotape with 4:11 left in the first quarter, hoping to turn Patrick Beverley’s second foul into a charging foul on Morant. Nope. Jenkins burned his green light a minute into the fourth quarter, appealing what was a pretty clear blocking foul on rookie Ziaire Williams getting knocked down by Towns. Sure, that might have reversed Towns’ and-1 opportunity that left the Wolves up 100-95. But Memphis could have used an appeal deeper into the quarter when Malik Beasley stepped out of bounds without a whistle and set up a Wolves basket. 4. Redemption for Towns, but will it last? The Minnesota center had a nightmare Play-In performance Tuesday, shooting 3-for-11 and fouling out in a mere 24 minutes broken up by long absences on the bench. But that guy was gone against Memphis. Towns scored 29 points, grabbed 13 rebounds, shot 11-for-18, blocked two shots and was on the floor for 43 minutes. His plus-16 for the game was surpassed only by Wolves sub Jaden McDaniels, who excelled at both ends (15 points, seven boards, three blocks) in a surgical 25 minutes. Towns knew he had righted his ship and talked afterward about maintaining his composure and letting “a lot” of irritation calls and plays roll off him. Of his production, he said: “I really feel like it’s something I’m supposed to do. I have a skill set that can’t be matched in this league.” 5. Expect a more raucous crowd in Game 2 Home-court advantage in the series went poof! for Memphis in a matter of hours. The fans at FedEx had their moments, but it’s hard to stay boisterous when your team doesn’t lead after the second quarter or even tie after the third. The Grizzlies had the ball in a one-possession game just once near the start of the fourth. They’ll be eager to get louder Tuesday, though Edwards did give the Memphis crowd credit in one category. “They talk so much trash,” he said. “Even the kids.” But he was smiling, crediting the heckling for upping his game Saturday while promising to “put on another show” in the next one.