Minnesota Timberwolves beat Denver Nuggets 112-96 at home on Saturday, April 25.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Nuggets had the better start, winning the first 23-22 to lead by 1 after one. The Nuggets kept the pressure on with a 31-28 second quarter, carrying a 4-point lead into halftime.
The Timberwolves won the third 32-24 to turn the game around, taking a 4-point lead into the fourth. The Timberwolves took the fourth 30-18; the Timberwolves finished the job for a 112-96 regulation win.
What decided it
The Timberwolves grabbed 38.1% of their own misses, while the Nuggets recovered 26.1%. The Timberwolves got more from their shots, finishing at 48.9% effective field-goal shooting compared with 41.4% for the Nuggets. The second chances kept adding up.
The Nuggets did win one battle, ball security: TOV% of 10.3 against 12.4. The Timberwolves made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 97 possessions per team, the Timberwolves produced 115.6 points per 100 possessions to 99.1 for the Nuggets.
Who made the difference
Ayo Dosunmu was the game's biggest individual force for MIN: 43 pts, 4 reb, 1 ast on 13-17 shooting. His Game Score of 37.1 led everyone. His team was +10 with him on the floor.
Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 24 pts, 15 reb, 9 ast, 3 stl on 8-22 shooting, good for a 23.1 Game Score.
Nikola Jokic (24 pts, 15 reb, 9 ast) recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 55% for the Timberwolves.
Across the last 11 meetings in our records, Minnesota Timberwolves lead 7-4.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.