Timberwolves beat Knicks, Anthony Edwards scores 36 and Karl-Anthony Towns sits out.

NEW YORK – Friday’s matchup between the Timberwolves and Knicks lost a healthy dose of its pregame intrigue when Karl-Anthony Towns, who stepped in as a game-time decision because of a thumb injury, missed his second straight game. There will be no other rematches this season between Towns and his former team.

The Wolves were down one of the players they received in trade for Towns, Donte DiVincenzo, who missed his first game of the season with a sprained left big toe.

Towns’ absence meant the Knicks were an easier opponent Friday, and Anthony Edwards made sure his team left with a 116-99 victory.

Edwards had a poor first quarter — he was just 1-for-8 — but he had a near-perfect game after that. He finished with 36 points, 13 rebounds and seven assists as he flirted with his first triple-double. Edwards found the right balance between passing and playmaking, especially in the fourth quarter as the Wolves turned a close game into a double-digit victory. The highlight of his night was a two-handed slam over Precious Achiuwa as Achiuwa defeated him with 7 minutes and 21 seconds remaining.

Naz Reid had 23 points off the bench.

The Wolves now head home for a game against Cleveland on Saturday.

With DiVincenzo out, manager Chris Finch returned Mike Conley to the starting lineup, reuniting the starting five the team had used for most of the season. That unit struggled to get off to slow starts, but on Friday the starters helped the Wolves build a small lead as Conley got off to a hot start and Edwards got off to a cold one. Finch often said the team needed to get Conley going in that lineup, and he took it upon himself to do so early with 10 points on 4-for-5 shooting.

The Wolves led 28-21 after one quarter despite a 1-for-8 start for Edwards, who had four assists in the quarter.