Minnesota Timberwolves beat Denver Nuggets 110-98 at home on Thursday, April 30.
The game, quarter by quarter
The Nuggets struck first, taking the opening quarter 30-29 and a 1-point lead after one. The Timberwolves moved in front with a 28-20 second quarter, carrying a 7-point lead into halftime.
The Timberwolves won the third 25-24 to create some separation, taking a 8-point lead into the fourth. The Timberwolves took the fourth 28-24; the Timberwolves finished the job for a 110-98 regulation win.
What decided it
The Timberwolves grabbed 41.3% of their own misses, while the Nuggets recovered 16.2%. The Timberwolves took better care of the ball, turning it over on 7.6% of possessions compared with 14% for the Nuggets. The second chances kept adding up.
The Nuggets did win one battle, the free-throw line: FT rate of 26.7 against 18.1. The Timberwolves made up for it elsewhere.
At roughly 93 possessions per team, the Timberwolves produced 118.6 points per 100 possessions to 105.6 for the Nuggets.
Who made the difference
Jaden McDaniels was the game's biggest individual force for MIN: 32 pts, 10 reb, 3 ast on 13-25 shooting. His Game Score of 27.1 led everyone. His team was +16 with him on the floor.
Nikola Jokic led the Nuggets with 28 pts, 9 reb, 10 ast on 11-19 shooting, good for a 23.5 Game Score.
Jaden McDaniels (32 pts, 10 reb, 3 ast), Rudy Gobert (10 pts, 13 reb, 8 ast), and Nikola Jokic (28 pts, 9 reb, 10 ast) each recorded a double-double.
What it means
The pre-game Win Meter had it close to a coin flip, at about 57% for the Timberwolves.
Across the last 13 meetings in our records, Minnesota Timberwolves lead 8-5.
Written automatically by Tip Off Live software from box score data. Ratings and probabilities are our own model estimates.