Edwards guides the Timberwolves past the Spurs 114-109 to tie the series after Wembanyama's ejection

MINNEAPOLIS (AP) — Anthony Edwards had 16 of his 36 points in the fourth quarter to help the Minnesota Timberwolves even their second-round NBA playoff series against the San Antonio Spurs with a 114-109 victory, following the stunning ejection of star Victor Wembanyama early in the second quarter of Game 4 on Sunday.

Naz Reid took the fateful elbow to the neck from a frustrated Wembanyama and finished with 15 points and nine rebounds to help the Timberwolves finish strong after some shaky stretches.

“Pain is weakness leaving the body,” Reid said. “That’s it.”

Edwards hit a 27-footer to bring the Wolves to within 94-91, turning to shout at the crowd for some help down the stretch. His catch-and-shoot 3-pointer from the wing with 5:12 left put them up 98-97, their first lead since midway through the third quarter.

Then the big men went to work without Wembanyama patrolling the paint. Rudy Gobert, who had 11 points and 13 rebounds, converted a three-point play with 3:02 left off a high-low feed from Reid and later threw down a dunk for a 107-101 lead with 1:56 to go after a slick pass from Julius Randle.

Reid’s follow shot with 40 seconds left gave the Wolves a seven-point lead, before Dylan Harper had a rebound, a drawn foul, a steal and two free throws to help the Spurs pull within three.

After managing to corral a full-court baseball toss from inbound passer Jaden McDaniels as De'Aaron Fox undercut his leaping catch and caused a loose ball, Ayo Dosunmu drew a foul and sank two free throws with 9.8 seconds left to put the game out of reach and tie the series at two games apiece.

San Antonio hosts Game 5 on Tuesday, with Wembanyama’s status to be determined by the league following the Flagrant 2 foul call and automatic ejection he was levied for the excessive contact to Reid.

Harper and Fox each scored 24 points and Stephon Castle added 20 as the Spurs guards unflinchingly took the baton from their 7-foot-4 superstar and turned the rest of the night into a midrange clinic with an array of pull-up jumpers in and around the paint.

“Just trying to be what the team needed me to be,” said Harper, the second overall pick in the NBA draft last year. “I think I did OK. Obviously the main goal is to win. We didn't get that done.”

The crowd at Target Center went wild when Wembanyama walked off the floor with Minnesota leading by two, but the Wolves never fully took advantage of the gift created by his absence. They've long had a tendency of losing their edge, particularly defensively, when an opponent's star player is missing.

“When every team is missing their best player, everybody plays free. They get more shots, more confident,” Edwards said. “So I think it was a lot harder on us.”

After committing six turnovers in a 20-point third quarter, the Wolves found themselves in another eight-point hole early in the fourth following Fox's 3-pointer before delivering another clutch finish.

“We have a resilient group of guys. No matter the circumstances, we are going to keep fighting and give everything we have and keep trusting one another,” Gobert said. “Just making the right play. That’s who we are. We might not be always consistent with that, but I feel like when it matters, we raise our level.”

AP NBA: https://apnews.com/hub/NBA

San Antonio Spurs head coach Mitch Johnson talks to his players during the first half in Game 2 of a second-round NBA playoffs basketball series against the Minnesota Timberwolves in San Antonio, Wednesday, May 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)

Minnesota Timberwolves head coach Chris Finch calls for the review of a play during the first half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball second-round playoffs series against the San Antonio Spurs in Minneapolis, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Timberwolves center Rudy Gobert (27) is fouled as he drives to the basket against San Antonio Spurs center Luke Kornet (7) during the first half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball second-round playoffs series in Minneapolis, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards, left, looks to shoot against San Antonio Spurs forward Victor Wembanyama (1) during the first half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball second-round playoffs series in Minneapolis, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

Minnesota Timberwolves guard Anthony Edwards reacts after scoring against the San Antonio Spurs during the first half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball second-round playoffs series in Minneapolis, Sunday, May 10, 2026. (AP Photo/Abbie Parr)

NEW YORK (AP) — AI stocks are seesawing lower Tuesday and weighing on Wall Street.

The S&P 500 slipped 0.2% even though the majority of stocks within the index rose. The drops for stocks in the artificial-intelligence industry dragged the Nasdaq down 0.8%, as of 9:35 a.m. Eastern time, while the Dow Jones Industrial Average was up 133 points, or 0.3%.

The weakness began in Asia, where Samsung Electronics tumbled 6.9% in Seoul. The giant maker of computer chips gave a preliminary look at its performance for the second quarter, and the numbers were strong. Samsung Electronics said it expects to say its operating profit surged roughly 1,800% from a year earlier.

Analysts called the numbers surprisingly good, but they still weren’t enough for investors after its stock came into the day having well more than doubled in the year so far.

On Wall Street, AI stocks have been facing similar pressure in recent weeks on worries that they shot too high and that AI may not produce enough productivity and profits to make all the investments in chips and data centers worth it.

Micron Technology fell 7% and was the heaviest weight on the S&P 500. Nvidia sank 1.5% and was just behind Micron in influence because it’s the largest stock on Wall Street.

In stock markets abroad, South Korea’s Kospi tumbled 4.9% because Samsung Electronics alone makes up more than a quarter of the index.

Other Asian indexes also fell, including a 2.1% drop for Japan’s Nikkei 225 index, while European indexes were mixed.

In the oil market, prices rose after the British military said a tanker traveling in the Strait of Hormuz was struck by a projectile and caught fire.

Iranian state television said the liquefied natural gas tanker came under attack after ignoring warnings but did not directly claim the assault.

Brent crude, the international standard, added 1.3% to $72.93.

AP Business Writers Matt Ott and Elaine Kurtenbach contributed to this report.

Michael Pistillo, left, and Federico DeMarco work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, July 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Michael Pistillo works on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, July 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

After ringing the opening bell from the White House, United States President Donald Trump is seen on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange, in New York, Monday, July 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Traders work on the floor at the New York Stock Exchange in New York, Monday, July 6, 2026. (AP Photo/Seth Wenig)

Currency traders watch monitors near a screen showing the Korea Composite Stock Price Index (KOSPI) at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)

Currency traders watch monitors at the foreign exchange dealing room of the Hana Bank headquarters in Seoul, South Korea, Tuesday, July 7, 2026. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon)