Julius Randle had 24 points and 11 assists to lead the Minnesota Timberwolves through another uneven performance, this time capitalizing on Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry’s absence in a 117-93 home victory on Thursday night that tied the second-round playoff series at one game apiece.

Anthony Edwards finished with 20 points after an injury scare for the Wolves, who more than tripled their 3-point output (going 16 for 37) from their Game 1 loss when Curry was sidelined by a left hamstring strain that likely will keep him out at least until next week.

Jonathan Kuminga (18 points) and Trayce Jackson-Davis (15 points) combined to shoot 14 for 17 from the floor for the Warriors, who took nearly five minutes to score until Jimmy Butler’s 3-pointer stopped the 13-0 run by the Wolves to start the game.

With the NBA’s career leading 3-point shooter sitting next to him on the bench, coach Steve Kerr used the kitchen-sink strategy with 14 players getting time — including 13 in the first 14 minutes.

Kuminga, the seventh overall pick in the 2021 draft who dropped out of the rotation at times during the regular season, was a bright spot off the bench. But this Warriors team was already thin on offense with a healthy Curry.

Against the Wolves and their athletic, long and versatile defense, there wasn’t much to lean on. Without Curry to worry about, the Wolves had an easier time keeping shooters Buddy Hield and Brandin Podziemski quiet and the smooth and savvy Butler in check.

The Warriors put up their lowest first-quarter score (15) in the playoffs since Game 6 of the 2016 NBA Finals, when they had 11 in a loss to Cleveland.

PIERCE WALKS THE TALK

Former Boston Celtics great Paul Pierce was so confident in his team in Game 2 against the New York Knicks, he said he would walk to work barefoot “in my robe” if they lost for a second straight game in the second-round series.

“If the Celtics lose Game 2 at home, I promise you, I am walking here tomorrow,” he declared on an FS1 show Wednesday. “I guarantee this one. Put the house on this game.”

That didn’t turn out so great. The Celtics blew a 20-point lead in Game 2, as they did in Game 1, and lost 91-90.

Pierce, the former Clipper, appeared to honor his vow Thursday, saying he set out before the sun rose for what he said was a 20.2-mile commute to work in the Los Angeles area. He posted updates on Instagram Live. Pierce made the wise choice of not walking barefoot, but bath-robed? Yes.

“All right, time for me to get to steppin’,” he said after 5 a.m. Pacific time, calling himself a “man of my word.”

“I cant believe the Celtics got me out here like this, dog,” he said in a later update. “I’m really walking out here like this.”

A little before 9 a.m., Pierce posted another Live of a couple of hecklers on the sidewalk.

“You lost that bet, huh?” one of them said.

Pierce took it all in stride, having some fun with them. He said he was about halfway at that point.

He posted another video saying he arrived to work at around 1 p.m.

HIGH DEMAND

Ticket demand is so great for Saturday’s Game 3 between the Celtics and Knicks that the average paid ticket price on the resale market approached $2,000 Thursday.

The average was $1,956 for Game 3 and $1,716 for Game 4, both at Madison Square Garden, according to ticketing technology company Victory Live, which analyzes transactions, not listings, on the secondary market.

The cheapest ticket for Game 3 was $626 on StubHub; for Game 4 it was $613 on Vivid Seats.

The Knicks have become the most exciting story in the playoffs, having erased 20-point deficits to beat the defending champion Celtics in the first two games of the best-of-7 Eastern Conference semifinals.