Karl-Anthony Towns stats Game 4: Timberwolves star overcomes fouls, criticism to help force Game 5 vs. Mavericks

Brendan OSullivan

Karl-Anthony Towns stats Game 4: Timberwolves star overcomes fouls, criticism to help force Game 5 vs. Mavericks image

The Timberwolves live another day, avoiding the sweep and forcing a Game 5 in the Western Conference Finals.

It's Minnesota's first Western Conference Finals win since 2004 when Kevin Garnett led Minnesota against the Los Angeles Lakers. Two decades later, Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns are vying for the franchise's first NBA Finals appearance.

Towns, who has struggled with fouls throughout his playoff career, put together a strong Game 4 performance amid the ongoing criticism on social media and more foul trouble.

The Sporting News breaks down Towns' stats and how he played in the road elimination game.

MORE: How many teams have overcome a 3-0 deficit?

Karl-Anthony Towns Game 4 stats

Towns was efficient and effective in limited minutes thanks to the foul trouble he got himself into. When he was on the floor, the Timberwolves were plus-15, which was a game-high for both teams.

The 7-footer played just 30 minutes but each second was critical in the 105-100 victory on Tuesday.

He started the game going to the basket, then hit three critical 3s in the final five minutes when the Wolves needed it most.

Points25
Rebounds5
Assists1
Steals0
Blocks0
Turnovers4
Personal fouls6
FG9/13
3-PT FG4/5
FT3/3
Plus-minus+15
Minutes30

Karl-Anthony Towns fouls

Towns' defense has been a weakness in his game for a while, but it's been much more of a problem in the playoffs, especially against the Mavericks.

He's received a lot of criticism on Twitter for his defense and picking up fouls. Towns had just two fouls in each of the first three games of the series, but he had six fouls in 30 minutes in Game 4. He picked up his fifth foul in Game 4 with five minutes to go in the third quarter.

Not to mention, the sixth foul came with 1:38 remaining in the game. Towns committed a silly foul on Luka Doncic's 3-point attempt and was forced to sit for the final 90 seconds. Luckily, that didn't matter as Minnesota still won.

Even Edwards had commented on Towns' tendency to foul early in the playoffs.

"Just stop f— fouling," Edwards said to Towns during a press conference.

Edwards reminded Towns to stop fouling after Game 4, this time saying he'll "beat [Towns] up on the bus." 

Timberwolves vs. Mavs schedule

Here is the complete schedule for the NBA Playoff series between the Timberwolves and Mavericks:

(3) Timberwolves vs. (5) Mavericks — Dallas leads 3-1

DateGameTime (ET)TV/Live stream
May 22Mavericks 108, Timberwolves 105
May 24Mavericks 109, Timberwolves 108
May 26Mavericks 116, Timberwolves 107
May 28Timberwolves 105, Mavericks 100
May 30Game 58:30 p.m.TNT, Sling
June 1Game 6*8:30 p.m.TNT, Sling
June 3Game 7*8:30 p.m.TNT, Sling

*If necessary

Brendan OSullivan

Brendan OSullivan Photo

Brendan O'Sullivan is an editorial intern for Sporting News, joining in 2024. He previously worked at Newsday on Long Island, New York after graduating from Quinnipiac University.