With 2:03 left in the third quarter, Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hit a 3-pointer to put the Denver Nuggets up 81-56. Game 1 was essentially over at that point. The Minnesota Timberwolves only managed to reach 80 points by the end of the fourth quarter.
Kentavious Caldwell-Pope hit the game winning 3-pointer with 2:03 left in the third quarter.
— Pat Radigan (@ByPatRadigan) April 17, 2023
It put Denver up 81-56 in a game where Minnesota only scored 80.
The Nuggets didn’t need to score in the fourth (mathematically) to win that game.
An absolute beat down.
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Nuggets vs. Timberwolves: A Complete Blowout
Two-time MVP Nikola Jokic delivered another well-balanced performance, outscoring and outrebounding the Wolves All-Star frontcourt. Before fouling out, his numbers read 13 points, 14 rebounds, 6 assists, and 1 steal on a 50-percent clip from the field in just 28.5 minutes on the floor.
Karl-Anthony Towns shot horribly, making just 5 of his 15 shots, missing all but one of his seven three-point attempts, and wasting away his only two free throws. Rudy Gobert was not far-off. He scored a measly eight points and had the game's worst plus-minus at -28.
The Wolves starters combined for a putrid plus-minus of -55 compared to the Denver Nuggets' +87.
Veteran leadership can only get them so far. Gobert, Mike Conley, and Kyle Anderson have 171 playoff games between them. In Game 1, however, they just accounted for 27 points, 18 rebounds, and 6 assists. The Joker can pretty much get a fantasy line better than that at times.
The second half started with the Wolves down by 11. They responded with an opening three-point brick from Towns. Four bad passes came next, two from Towns and one each for Conley and Anthony Edwards. Next thing they knew, the lead was up to 19, courtesy of a Michael Porter, Jr. three, which also sent Edwards to the bench with his fourth foul.
The Wolves evened up the quarter by scoring in the fourth, matching the Nuggets' 22 points shot after shot. The stalemate could have helped them if they hadn't opened the period down 29.
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