Nuggets 115 - 112 Timberwolves summary, stats, scores and highlights

With the game on the line late in the fourth quarter, the Nuggets went with their MVP who drilled not one but two big threes to ice the T'Wolves and jump them in the Western Conference standings. 

First to the rescue came Michael Porter Jr. who had a spurt of 7 straight points in which he erased the T'Wolves four point lead and put the Nuggets ahead setting up for a tight finish from the Target Center. 

It started to look easy for the Nuggets, but they hit a wall in the third quarter and let their one time 18 point lead slip as the Timberwolves would take the lead in the 4th quarter, but guess who was there to bail out the defending champions. 

Luka Garza played a lot of minutes with Gobert and Reid sidelined and did a pretty good job on both ends considering who he was up against. While there may have been flashes of Garza playing well, Jokic was on fire all night. 

The Joker was taking anything that was given to him, including wide open threes that he couldn't believe Anthony Edwards was willing to give up. 

Jamal Murray may have been quiet at times on Tuesday, but he had a not so quiet 17 and 11 assists as the Nuggets got out to an 18 point lead in the first half and looked like they were going to run away with the game. 

With the big men out for Minnesota, Nikola Jokic had the green light to shoot early and often and didn't pass it up. He had 22 shots, most in the first half, and had just 2 assists against the T'Wolves. 

The Denver Nuggets bounced back from their buzzer beating loss in Dallas with a narrow victory in Minnesota in what could be a deciding factor come playoff seeding time. Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 35 and 16 against a short handed Timberwolves. 

The T'Wolves were on the second end of a back to back and were missing Naz Reid and Rudy Gobert which left a lot of space down low for Aaron Gordon and Nikola Jokic. 

Edwards had a great look at a game tying three but he came up just short of the last second heroics. 

The Nuggets come into Minnesota and beat a short handed T'Wolves team that took them to the final bell. 

Murray to the line and he hits both FTs with 4.2 to go. 

McDaniels drills a quick three ball to cut the lead to one with 4.7 on the clock

MPJ fouled by Conley and he hits both FTs with 7.6 to go. 

Conley with a quick trigger three and he hits it from the wing and he hits it with 12 on the clock!

Jokic to the line after the foul on Conley and he hits one of two FTs. 

MPJ to the line after the foul on McDaniels and he hits one of two, but KCP gets the offensive board. 

Kickout from Edwards to McDaniels for the corner three!

Jokic hits another big shot that should finish the T'Wolves off. 

Conley to the line after the foul on Jokic and he hits both FTs. 

Conley to the line after the foul on Murray and he hits both FTs with 1:35 to go. 

Jokic puts the nail in the coffin with a three ball from the top of the key!

Timeout T'Wolves with 1:45 to go in the 4th. 

2:26 to go in the 4th. 

Morris to the line after the foul on Holiday and he hits one of two FTs. 

Porter with a catch and shoot three in the corner and he drills it! He's got 23 for the night. 

McDaniels drills the three ball and got fouled by Holiday! FT is no good. 

Jackson lays it off the glass with the right hand from the left side. 

McDaniels slashing to the rack and he throws it down with a one handed slam!

Jokic and Holiday working the two man game on the perimeter and Jokic drills the three from the top of the key. 

MPJ has 7 stragiht points after his pull up from the top of the key. 

Timeout Nuggets with 5:40 to go. 

MPJ slashes to the bucket and Jokic found him for the slam in traffic. 

Porter Jr. off the handoff and he drills the three from the wing!

Garza to the line after the foul on Watson and he hits one of two FTs. 

Garza to the line after dragging down the offensive board, and we are headed to a timeout with 7:10 to go in the 4th. 

Conley stops on a dime and drops the fader in the paint. 

Conley makes a rim run and lays it up with the left had to give the T'Wolves the lead again. 

McDaniels with the pump fake from the block and he uses the glass off the leaner from outside the lane. 

Timeout Denver with 9:34 to go. 

Watson goes coast to coast and gets the foul on the rack attack. FT is no good. 

Conley to the line after the foul on Murray and he hits both FTs. 

We are headed to the fourth quarter with the Nuggets up 3, but Minnesota came roaring back in a quarter they outscored Denver 29-17. 

KCP with the steal and the pull up from the top of the key and he drills it!

Jokic goes into the body of Garza and gets the lay in to fall. 

Edwards comes up with the steal and pulls up from three point range!

Edwards with the eurostep in the lane and lays it up over Jokic! 

Timeout Nuggets as Edwards goes to the bench urging on the crown in the Target Center!

Anderson with the shot put from outside the lane off the entry feed from ANT. 

Morris answers with a three ball from the opposite corner!

MPJ in the corner off the kick out from Jackson!

Edwards gets the roll off the front of the rim from the FT line. 

Jokic backs down in the lane and hits the hook over Anderson. 

Gordon sent to the line by Conley and he hits both FTs. 

McDaniels fouled by Murray and he hits one of two FTs and we have a one possession game. 

Anderson to the line after the foul on KCP and he hits both FTs. 

Edwards fades in the lane and he hits the short jumper out of the timeout. 

Anderson pulls up from the mid range the Nuggets are going to take a timeout after a quick 2:30 minutes from the T'Wolves. 

Murray launched up a prayed and had it answered thanks to a little back action!

Edwards going back to the cup and he gets the lay up off the glass to fall. 

McDaniels and Edwards hit back to back three ball, and it's a single digit game already!

Murray to the cup and he finds the space to reverse it underneath. 

Anderson with the floater on the baseline to start the half. 

WE ARE BACK IN PLAY FOR THE SECOND HALF FROM THE TAGET CENTER!

Jokic doesn't need any help scoring, but with Minnesota's two big men out that meant it was time for him to attack. He had 22 points off 15 shots in the first half.

With no Naz Reid or Rudy Gobert the Nuggets had a field day in the first half. Aaron Gordon has 6 offensive boards and 12 points and had his way down low against an undermanned T'Wolves team. 

WE ARE HEADED TO HALFTIME WITH THE NUGGETS UP BY 15!

Jokic hits the FT line jumper with a hand in his face. 

Garza with a baby hook in the lane and he gets the roll. 

Murray drives to the lane and throws it down with two hands. 

Edwards pulls up from the paint and gets it to go. 

Murray over the top for Jokic who lays it up and in like he was in practice. 

Edwards turns the jets on and races to the bucket to lay it off the glass. 

Garza drills the three ball from the top of the key!

MPJ gets the reverse lay up to drop and the foul! FT is good after the foul on McDaniels. 

Edwards to the line after the foul on Jokic and he hits one of two FTs. 

Jokic left alone from downtown, and he sinks the three at the top of the key. 

Morris with the drive and an off ballance lay up from the left side. 

Holiday knocks down his second three of the quarter off the kick out from Jackson!

KCP with the reverse lay up off the glass and one! FT is good. 

Jokic running the break and he gets the easy lay up after a bit of cherry picking. 

Morris with a tear drop from the FT line and that falls. 

MPJ fights for his own rebound and puts it back up and in. 

Anderson down low and he hits the floater over MPJ out of the timeout. 

Alexander-Walker spinning and hitting the floater in the lane. 

Holiday drills the three from the wing off the kick out from Gordon. 

McDaniels to the line after the foul on Braun and he hits both FTs. 

McDaniels fouled by Watson and he hits one of two FTs. 

McDaniels comes out of the timeout and throws it down over the defense after almost losing the ball on the perimeter. 

Gordon with another offensive rebound, he's got six of those and 12 points after the put back. 

Timeout T'Wolves with 8:21 to go in the 2nd. 

Murray drills the pull up in the lane and he's starting to heat up with Jokic on the bench. 

McDaniels hits the pull up from a step inside the FT line. 

Conley sends Murray to the line where he hits both FTs. 

McDaniels explodes on the baseline and throws it down over the defense. 

Gordon on the spin from the baseline and the reverse lay up. He's got 10 on the night. 

Murray down the lane and he uses the glass on the finger roll. 

Edwards missed a reverse lay up attempt but Garza was there for the offensive board and tip back. 

That brings us to the end of the first quarter, and the Nuggets are absolutely dominating down low. Jokic has 13 and 8 while Edwards leads the T'Wolves with 11. 

Braun answers back with a three ball after the perimeter pass from KCP. 

Extra pass from McLaughlin and Warren drills the flat line three. 

McLaughlin with the offensive board and the put back in traffic. 

Jokic doing what ever he pleases right now. He goes up and under and he's got 13 and 8 already. 

Warren to the line and he hits one of two FTs after the foul on Watson. 

Jokic on the turnaround fader from the baseline and it's too easy for him right now. 

Jokic gets the baby hook in the lane to go out of the timeout. 

Bad pass from Gordon and Jokic couldn't handle it which opened up space for Edwards to take advantage after the turnover with an up and under in the lane. 

Timeout Nuggets with 3:22 to go in the 1st quarter. 

Alexander-Walker takes it down Main Street and lays it up and in. 

Gordon snags the offensive board and the put back and gets the foul! FT is no good. 

Warren on the drive down the baseline and he floats one up and in. 

Gordon leaves it for KCP on the perimeter and he steps into a three ball form the wing!

MPJ gets the roll in the lane off the catch and shoot. 

MPJ drills the corner three after another offensive rebound from the Nugget. 

Edwards skying through the lane for a tip slam off the miss from Alexander-Walker!

Dump down from Murray to Gordon for the slam. 

Garza drills a three ball and that gets this crowd going here at the Target Center!

Timeout from Minnesota with under 7:00 to go in the first quarter. 

Gordon follows his own miss and tips it in. 

Edwards drills the three ball from the top of the key and he's got a quick 5. 

Jokic attacking the rack again in the paint and gets the lay up to fall. 

Edwards with the step back from a foot inside the arc. 

Anderson called for his third foul after an offensive board from Gordon and he's got to go to the bench with no one to back him up at center. Gordon to the line where he hits both FTs. 

Jokic to the line after the second foul on Anderson and he hits both FTs. 

Jokic clears out space and gets the pass from Murray down low for an easy lay up. 

Murray drills a three ball to start his night. 

Edwards using his pivot foot to spin and go up and under KCP and lay it off the glass. 

McDaniels goes between the legs and pulls up in the lane. 

Jokic to the line after a couple offensive rebounds and already you can see Gobert and Reid's absence taking it's toll. Jokic hits one of two FTs after the foul on Anderson. 

WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM MINNESOTA!!!

Not only do the Nuggets have one of the top starting fives in the league, they also have one of the healthiest starting fives in the league. Jokic and Murray are the headliners but Gordon, KCP and MPJ are all capable of taking over at any point in the game. 

Have no fear, ANT Man is here. After speculation about his status tonight, Anthony Edwards is in the starting line up for a battle with another MVP candidate. He is joined by Conley and Alexander-Walker, McDaniels and Anderson. 

NBA

Can the Minnesota Timberwolves clinch the tie-breaker against the Denver Nuggets?

I did my best to explain the tiebreak situation between the Nugs and T'Wolves, but our Roddy Cons breaks it down in much better, more eloquent detail. 

Western Standings

Taking a look at the standings in the Western Conference, we see these two teams right at the top of the table. Both are trailing the Oklahoma City Thunder, but by just a half game which means every game from here until the rest of the season is going to be a must win, especially in head-to-head matchups like tonight’s game. The T’Wolves won the one and only other match up between these two teams back in November, so they currently hold the tie breaker but this is the first of three remaining games between these two sides so there is still a lot to be settled before the playoff seedings are handed out. 

ANT Man activated

Anthony Edwards is quickly becoming one of the newest sensations in the NBA. He has made the jump from being a good player to being one of the best players in the league, and a serious contender for the MVP. He already was getting acknowledgement for the award before Karl-Anthony Towns went out with a torn meniscus, but since the big man’s injury Edwards has carried the T’Wolves and kept pace with the Thunder and Nuggets for the one seed in the West. ANT Man is averaging 26.6 points, 5.4 rebounds and 5.1 assists and if Minnesota end up at the top of the West come playoff time, it would be hard to argue against Edwards getting his first MVP. He was listed as questionable after hurting his finger last night, but reports are he will play tonight.

Silky Serbian

For the second straight game, Nikola Jokic is going up against another MVP candidate. After being limited to just 16 points last game in Denver, he comes into tonight ready to face Anthony Edwards. Jokic has to be the front runner in the MVP voting averaging 25.9 points, 12.2 rebounds and 9.1 assists, but like we already not the Serb has no interest in winning individual awards. He would sacrifice his MVP candidacy for a second straight NBA title in a heart beat, and that’s what makes him such an easy player to root for, both individually and collectively. 

T'Wolves last game

We could talk about the Timberwolves going into Utah and getting a win to keep them on pace with the rest of the teams chasing the one seed, but really we are just here for the candidate for dunk of the year. Anthony Edwards went above the clouds and actually dislocated his finger while sending Josh Collins to the locker room with a head contusion. Edwards already has a nominee for block of the year and his dunk will go straight to the top of the bookmakers charts for dunk of the year. Oh yea, the T’Wolves also won the game after trailing by 15 in the first quarter, thanks to Edwards’ 32 points.

Nuggets last game 

Denver is coming off of a loss in Dallas that ended their five game win streak, and put them behind the T’Wolves in the standings coming into this game. It was a showdown between two of the favorites for the MVP award as Nikola Jokic and Luka Doncic squared off, and it was the Slovenian who got the best of the two time MVP winner, but Kyrie Irving had the final word after a game that went back and forth for the first three quarters. Dallas pulled away in the 4th, building up a 13 point lead, but Denver fought back to take the lead in the last half minute. After Jamal Murray hit a go ahead three with 27 seconds left, Donicic tied the game up with a pull up three and set up the game winning shot for Dallas with 2.8 seconds left in regulation. Kyrie got the inbound, dribbled left, looking like he had nothing but pulled up with a left handed floater from the FT line and sunk the game winner over Nikola Jokic.

We are live from Minneapolis 

Hello everyone and welcome to the Target Center where the T’Wolves are back home for the second end of a back to back home series and looking to stay in the top two of the Western Conference. Minnesota are coming into tonight on a three game win streak thanks to the incredible run that Anthony Edwards has been on recently and tonight they take on a Denver Nuggets team coming off a streak snapping loss in Dallas over the weekend. These two look like they are going to go head to head for rest of the season as both teams try to claim the one seed in the West.

Nuggets vs. Minnesota live

We have a heavyweight bout at the top of the conference between two teams eyeing the one seed in the West. Nikola Jokic and the defending champion Denver Nuggets head to Minnesota to take on the Timberwolves in a game that could have massive implications on playoff seeding come the end of the regular season. AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s game from Minneapolis.