Timberwolves 106 - 80 Nuggets summary, stats, scores and highlights | NBA Playoffs Game 2
Karl-Anthony Towns knew it was going to be up to him to step up with Rudy Gobert out for Game 2. He and the Timberwolves dominated from start to finish and carried the spirit of the three time Defensive Player of the Year with them for all four quarters.
Edwards ended the night with 27 points, snapping his streak of consecutive 40 point nights, but the didn't stop him from getting MVP chants on the defending champions' home court. Minnesota will now take a 2-0 lead back to the Target Center and have a chance to close out the series at home. Game 3 is set for Friday night at 9:30 pm ET .
It doesn't matter if he's winning by 30 or losing by 5, Anthony Edwards comes out and plays on every play. He was hitting turn around fade aways on one end and locking down on defense on the other end.
This game was over by halftime. Edwards and KAT had the Wolves up more than 20 points before the halftime break, and they cruised from there.
Murray was so frustrated with the refs, at one point he launched a heating pad on to the court from the Denver bench. He didn't get punished in the moment, but he will probably be getting a fine in the mail some time soon.
The Wolves forced 16 Denver turnovers as Jokic, Murray and Porter all had four turnovers a piece. Murray had another nightmare of the game, scoring just 8 points and shooting 3/18 from the field. He has been bothered by the length of Minnesota, and he started to get into it with the referees in Game 2.
Naz Reid came through in the clutch last game, and the Sixth Man of the Year had another productive night off the bench. He had 14 points, 5 rebounds and four blocks making sure he pitched in on the defensive end with out Gobert.
This is just a little look into just how tough the defense was. Look how much Murray has to labor just to get the ball over half court. The Wolves are up 2-0, and it's because their effort on both sides of the ball has been heroic. The Nuggets have yet to show they can hang with this younger, faster, stronger team.
Minnesota's defense was insatiable in Game 2. They suffocated Jamal Murray and the Nuggets for all four quarters, playing a tough, fast, physical brand of defense that threw Denver off their game from the beginning.
Anthony Edwards sat back and let Karl-Anthony Towns take the game over in the first quarter. He had just 4 points in the opening 12 minutes as Towns scored 11 set the tone for his team for the rest of the game.
The Minnesota Timberwolves will be taking a 2-0 lead back to the Target Center after blowing out the Denver Nuggets on Monday night. Karl-Anthony Towns had 27 points and 12 rebounds in the 106-80 victory from Ball Arena.
After taking Game 1, the Wolves had to go back into Denver and take down the defending champions without their three time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert who traveled to be with his family for the birth of his child. Towns saw the opportunity and took it. He had a monster game on both side of the ball, and got the Timberwolves off to a hot start in the early minutes.
IT'S ALL OVER!!!
Wow! The Minnesota don't just win Game 2, they blow the defending champions out and take a 2-0 lead back home.
Picket spots up from the elbow and he hits the mid range jumper.
Moore knifes through the lane and gets a tough lay up to fall in traffic.
Strawther to the line after the foul on McLaughlin and he his both FTs.
Garza with the drop step down low and that got a rise out of the bench.
Minott hits the three ball out of the timeout out and even the third team is on tonight for MIN.
Timeout Minnesota and that will be the end of the night for the Wolves starters with 3:15 to go.
Nnaji to the line after the foul on KAT and he hits one of two FTs.
Edwards slashes down the rack and lays it up and off the glass fro the left side.
Timeout Denver with 3:29 to go in the 4th quarter.
Gordon in the corner and he sinks the three off the kick out from Porter.
Conley pulls up from the elbow and he sinks it from the mid range.
KCP gets the rebound off the Murray missed three and he puts it back up and in.
Edwards spins on KCP, lays it up and gets the foul! FT is no good.
KAT pulls the trigger from the corner out of the timeout and he's got 27 on the night.
Holiday drills his fourth three of the game, this one fro the corner on the step back!
Timeout Timberwolves with 6:33 to go in the 4th quarter.
Edwards sticks a pull up three from the wing!
Murray missed the lay up but Gordon was there to tip slam it home.
Kick out by Anderson to Alexander-Walker and he sinks the corner three!
Jackson finds Braun slashing to the cup and he lays it up and in from the lft side of the lane.
KAT to the line after the foul on Holiday and he hits both FTs.
Jackson drills a three ball from the top of the key to start the quarter
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE THIRD QUARTER AND THE T'WOLVES LEAD BY 22!
Jokic with a long outlet to a wide open Porter for the slam.
Reid with the baby hook in the paint over Jokic.
Three ball from the corner from Holiday off the kick out from Porter.
The call is overturned and the possession goes back to the Wolves.
Alexander-Walker called for a foul and MIN is going to challenge after it looked like he got all ball.
The call is reversed and Edwards is called on for the foul, but he is back in the game after the timeout.
Jokic was called for a foul on the floor on Edwards and the Nuggets want to see who initiated the contact so the challenge the call.
Edwards came off the floor holding his left pec or shoulder. That is something to keep an eye on for the rest of the game considering the huge lead.
Holiday to the line after the foul on Morris and he hits one of two FTs.
Murray off the dribble and he scoops it off the glass.
Jokic to the line after the foul on Edwards and he hits both FTs.
Edwards with the turn around fader from the baseline and he hits it over two defenders.
Gordon got T'd up during in the timeout, but Conly missed the FT .
Holiday hits Jokic streaking down the lane and he lays it up and in.
Timeout T'Wolves with 5:03 to go in the 3rd quarter.
KCP pulls up from the elbow and that finally goes down.
Reid with the catch and shoot from the top of the key and he drills the three ball!
Murray to the line after the foul on Alexander-Walker and he hits both FTs.
Conley takes KCP off the dribble and lays it up and in.
Porter with a quick trigger three from the top of the key out of the timeout.
Anderson looks out to Alexander-Walker in the corner and he sinks the three!
The lead is up to 32! Timeout Nuggets with 7:19 to go in the 3rd quarter.
Anderson pulls up from the baseline and he hits the short jumper.
Jokic off the dribble and he euro steps his way to the cup.
Antoher offensive rebound for Anderson and he hits Edwards for the side step lay up down the lane.
KAT sends Jokic to the line where he hits both FTs.
Conley missed the three ball and KAT pulls down the rebound before putting it back up and in.
McDaniels to the line after the foul on Murray and he hits one of two FTs.
Murray off the dribble and he hits it from the baseline. Denver want to see more of that.
Extra pass from Anderson to McDaniels across the paint and he hammers it home for the first bucket of the third quarter.
WE ARE BACK IN PLAY FROM DENVER!
The T'Wolves won the second quarter 33-15 as everyone chipped in, including ANT who had 12 of his 16 in the second.
KAT has 20 in the first half, and is 8/11 from the field. He picked up a quick foul early on but did well to not pick up a second in the entire first half.
Just look how hard it is for Murray to get over half court. He is getting nothing easy, and the frustration is starting to set in, with the defense and with the refs who are letting MIN play very physical.
Naz Reid had 14 points in the final quarter of Game 1, and came into this game doing it on both ends. He's got 9 points and four blocks, filling in nicely for Gobert.
The Nuggets have size. Gordon is big. MPJ is big. Jokic is obviously big. But the T'Wolves are big, they are long, and that are fast. They have suffocated the Nuggets tonight on the defensive end and that has led to transition points on the other end.
Edwards had just 4 points in the first quarter, but he saw KAT rolling and took a back seat to the big man. He has said before that KAT is the best offensive player on the team, and he was more than happy to see his teammate taking control early on. Believe me, Edwards would come alive, and expect to see him light up the second half.
If it wasn't for the hot shooting of Aaron Gordon this game would be a whole lot more ugly. He had 13 points in the first quarter, but he went cold and no one else stepped up for Denver in the second quarter. Jokic has 8, Murray has 2 and that is because they are getting shut down by the MIN defense.
The T'Wolves came into the night with Rudy Gobert, and KAT saw that as an opportunity to dominate this game. He came out firing in the first quarter, scoring 11 points including 9 early on.
WE ARE HEADED TO HALFTIME!
The T'Wolves have stunned this crowd here in Denver. Their defense is stifling and that has led to easy bucket on the other end. The Nuggets are headed to half with their largest ever playoff deficit after two quarters.
Jokic to the line and he hits both FTs after the foul on Reid.
MPJ losses the ball and Conley scooped it and found Edwards for the two handed jam in transition.
Reid with the steal on the pass from Murray and that leads to a wide open Alexander-Walker three ball from the wing!
Edwards driving back to the rack and he stretches to bucket for the slam.
Jokic kicks it to the corner and Holiday drills the three ball, his second of the night.
Edwards burns past Gordon from the perimeter and lays it up and it.
The T'Wolves lead by 24 and the Nuggets need a timeout with 3:24 to go in the half.
Edwards pulls down the rebound and slices through the paint for a coast to coast lay up high off the glass.
Edwards to the line after KCP picks up his third and he hits one of two.
Anderson gets the offensive rebound and feeds it to KAT who lays it up and off the glass.
Jokic with a disguised shot/pass that ends up in the hands of Gordon for the alley oop.
Edwards to the line after the foul on KCP and he hits both FTs. He's got just 7 points and the T'Wolves lead by 19 still.
KAT at the line after the foul on Jokic and he hits both FTs.
Jokic backing his way to the paint and he wiggles past KAT for the lay up.
Edwards to the line after the foul on KCP and he hits one of two FTs.
Braun lost it on his way up but Porter was there for the rebound and the put back.
Porter eurosteps through the lane and gets the lay up to go off the glass.
Reid nails another three ball from the wing after Conley found him!
Murray finally gets on the board with a floater in traffic.
McDaniels kicks it out to Alexander-Walker for three from the wing!
KAT pulls up with a hand in his face and drills the three ball from the wing!
MIN are up by 16 thanks to some brilliant, lock down defense and the Nuggets need a timeout with 9:21 to go in the half.
Towns breaks through a hand check and lays it high off the glass from the left side of the lane.
Reid start the second quarter with a three ball from the top of the key off the dish from Conley.
WE ARE AT THE END OF THE FIRST QUARTER!
MIN leads by 8 after one. KAT got off to a fantastic start, scoring 11 points while Edwards has just 4 in the first.
Gordon was lighting it up from everywhere in the first quarter, scoring 13 points whlie Jokic is the only other starter who has scored with 4 points.
Minnesota back running the break, and Morris missed the three but Anderson was there for the tip in.
Morris getting out in transition and he lays it up and in and the speed is getting to Denver.
Jokic zips it across the baseline for Holiday who drills it after coming right off the bench.
Alexander-Walker running the break after the turn over on MPJ, and he lays it up and in.
Edwards going to the paint hard and didn't get the foul but the lay up goes.
TImeout Nuggets and Mike Malone sprinted on the court and got in the face of a referee after a no call on Murray on the other end.
KAT barrells over MPJ and he lays it up and in.
Murray running the break and he found Gordon in the corner for three!
Gordon from the FT line and he's got the hot hand to start Game 2.
Reid off the bench and he drills the three ball to pick up where he left off last game.
Gordon was left open from three and he drills it off the dish from Jokic.
Edwards squeezes through the defense and gets the reverse to fall.
KAT pump fakes in the corner and he drives baseline for the soaring lay up off the glass.
Gordon to the line after the foul on McDaniels and he hits one of two FTs.
Timeout Nuggets with 6:49 to go in the first quarter.
Jokic going into the body of KAT who has to be careful with a foul already and he lays it up and in.
KAT was open from the top of the key and he drills the three off the dish from Edwards.
KAT catches and turns for the jumper from the elbow.
Jokic spins on KAT in the paint and he lays it up and over Towns who fell to the ground after the contact.
Anderson takes a dribble and pulls up from the FT line.
Murray missed the floater in the lane but Gordon was there for the tip in.
Anderson strips Jokic and McDaniels takes it on the break for the lay in.
KAT slips to the basket off the screen from the wing and he got the assist from Conley and laid it off the glass.
Gordon gets the night started with a ump hook over KAT.
WE ARE UNDERWAY FROM DENVER!!!
Nuggets starters
In Game 1, the Nuggets starters got off to a terrible start to the game, scoring just four points in the first seven minutes of the game. That's no reason for Mike Malone to turn on what has been the most consistent starting five this year. It's Murray, Porter, KCP, Gordon and Jokic and look for them to come out swinging early on.
Minnesota's starters
With Gobert not in Denver tonight, it's going to be Kyle Anderson filling in down low. Towns is going to be defending Jokic to start with but he will get help from Anderson and company. In the back court the T'Wolves are going with Anthony Edwards, McDaniels and Conley running the point.
Sidelined from the sidelines
What a strange game it must have been for coach Chris Finch who had to watch his team take on the Nuggets from behind the Wolves bench after rupturing his patella tendon in Game 4 against the Suns. That was Minnesota’s first game since his injury, and while he was in the stadium he was far from the sideline, and timeouts. He has the ability to communicate with his team, but for now it seems that he is using assistant coach Micah Nori. The situation is not ideal, but Finch is still a part of the team and a part of the game, even if he may not be able to be as vocal as he might like.
Gobert to miss tonight
The Timberwolves will be without two time Defensive Player of the Year Rudy Gobert as he spends the night with his family who just welcomed a new born child earlier today. Minnesota are big, but they will feel the absence of their anchor on the defensive end. Naz Reid and Nikola Jokic will be taking turns trying to slow down Nikola Jokic on the defensive end.
Murray playing through the pain
Jamal Murray had a night to forget in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals. It should be stated that he is still dealing with a calf strain that dates back to Game 4 against the Lakers. He played in Game 5, winning the game and closing out the series in a 32 point night, but don’t let that fool you. Jamal Murray is not 100% although he would never admit it. He was held scoreless in the first half of Game 1 against the T’Wolves, but responded with 17 in the second half. Reid scored 10 straight points in the final quarter and ended the night with 16 to assist Edwards in closing out the game and making a statement to the Nuggets and the rest of the world.
ANT or GOAT?
Believe me. I can’t stand when people throw out outrageous, unrealistic, unfair comparisons out into the air. Putting anyone in the same conversation as Michael Jordan is ridiculous, and it’s unfair to heap all that pressure on a players shoulders, especially when that player is just 22 years of age. But… Anthony Edwards is ready for that pressure, and he’s got the game to back it up. Am I saying that ANT Man is going to go on to win six rings, five MVPs and 10 scoring titles like the GOAT? No. But I’ll be damned if he didn’t make a couple of moves that brought back shades Michael Jordan. While Edwards has asked for the comparisons to stop, or demanded it. NBA Insider Chris Boussard relayed a message he got from Jordan, not too long ago saying “Jordan said there are similarities in their games, and he agreed, so if Jordan says there are similarities, there are similarities."
Game 1 recap
Coming into this postseason, everyone knew the T’Wolves were good. Game 1 in Denver showed us how good they really are. They came out swinging in the opening quarter of the first game, jumping out to a 14 point first quarter lead thanks to Anthony Edwards who went off in the first half. Minnesota’s size was predicted to be a problem for the Nuggets in this match up and it turned out for the first seven minutes of the game especially. Denver had just 4 points with under five to play in the first quarter but the Nuggets would respond thanks to Nikola Jokic and Michael Porter Jr. Anthony Edwards carried his team for the first half, but in the second half he got some big help from veteran Mike Conley and Sixth Man of the Year Naz Reid. Conley had 14 points in the second half, while Naz Reid put the team on the shoulders scoring 14 of his 16 points in the final quarter.
We are live from Denver
Hello everyone and welcome to Ball Arena where the Nuggets need a bounce back game tonight against the Minnesota Timberwolves who shocked the nation by taking down the reigning champions in Game 1 of the Western Conference Semifinals. Denver isn’t used to losing in front of their home fans, and the last time they lost two home games in a row came in the last playoff series they were knocked out of back in 2021 in a 4-0 sweep at the hand of the Phoenix Suns. Tonight the Nuggets will look to restore order before heading to Minnesota for Games 3 and 4.
Timberwolves vs. Nuggets Game 2
The Denver Nuggets are in a position they aren’t too accustomed to in the last couple of years. They come into tonight down 0-1 after losing their opening game of their second round series to the Minnesota Timberwolves. Tonight Nikola Jokic and the Nuggets need a win to even up the series before hitting the road, but Anthony Edwards and the Wolves have other ideas. AS English will be with you all night providing live coverage, stats, highlights and analysis of tonight’s Game 2 from the Mile High City.