MINNEAPOLIS — The Corner Bar in Minneapolis is normally considered a Vikings bar.
The bar is about a half-mile from U.S. Bank Stadium, and the bar is usually packed during every home Vikings game.
However, on Sunday night, the bar was filled with different kinds of fans.
“What I saw Sunday night, it was like another Vikings game with how many people showed up, and all the excitement we saw,” owner Bill Murray said after the Wolves punched their ticket to the Western Conference Finals.
Timberwolves management approached Murray several weeks ago with the proposal of making the bar an official watch party site during the playoffs. Murray loved the idea, because he himself has been a Wolves fan for decades.
“I was a fan during those (Kevin) Garnett years, and even before that,” Murray said.
He and his staff didn’t know what to expect during the Wolves playoff run this year, they knew the bar would be busy, but they didn’t expect to see hundreds of fans every night.
“It doesn’t really matter if they’re home or away, we see a big turnout. We saw a Friday night crowd on a Sunday night and that’s huge for us,” Murray said.
Owners of Falling Knife Brewery have also embraced the Wolves this season.
“When we started the brewery, one of the intentions we had was to make this a place where you could bring your Wolves fandom out to shine,” co-owner Dan Herman said.
Herman and his business partners have been Timberwolves season ticket holders for years.
He says fans have endured a lot of lean years cheering on the Wolves and that hardship is a big reason why fans are so excited this year.
“It’s been a lot of fun to watch the games with fans – both old and new. Fans who really know this is something special,” Herman said.
Besides watch parties, fans can also catch the games in-person at the Target Center.
As of Monday afternoon, the cheapest ticket available for Game 1 of the Western Conference Finals was being sold for $380 through a reseller.
The most expensive ticket for Game 1 was more than $2,000.
For those looking to watch from home, according to the NBA, all seven games of the NBA Western Conference Finals will be televised on TNT.
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