Nikola Jokic had 25 points, 13 rebounds and 11 assists, Jamal Murray scored 30 points, and the host Denver Nuggets beat the Minnesota Timberwolves 116-105 on Saturday to take a 1-0 lead in their first-round Western Conference playoff series.
Murray was perfect from the line, hitting a career-high 16 free throws, while Aaron Gordon finished with 17 points and Cameron Johnson and Christian Braun pitched in with 12 points each for Denver.
Game 2 is Monday night in Denver.
Anthony Edwards led Minnesota with 22 points and Rudy Gobert produced 17 points and 10 rebounds. Jaden McDaniels and Julius Randle scored 16 apiece, Ayo Dosunmu scored 14 and Donte DiVincenzo added 12.
The Timberwolves trailed by 12 after three but rallied to start the fourth. Dosunmu and Edwards hit 3-pointers, Gobert made a driving layup and then a put-back during a 12-4 run that cut the deficit to 97-95.
But Jokic answered with a three-point play and a tip-in to extend the lead to seven with 5:45 left.
Following a Minnesota timeout, Edwards missed a 19-footer and Braun made two free throws. Jokic notched his 22nd playoff triple-double off a Minnesota turnover that made it 106-97.
Edwards missed a long three that would have made it a two-point game with 2:25 remaining. Gordon hit a follow dunk and Gobert’s offensive goaltending miscue kept it at 108-101 with 1:39 left.
The Timberwolves led by as many as 12 in the first half but a strong second quarter by the Nuggets sent it into intermission tied at 62-1ll.
Denver took advantage of a Timberwolves’ scoring drought of 4:22 to open up a big third quarter lead. Gordon scored half of the points in a 14-0 run, capping it with a follow dunk to make it 82-68. McDaniels hit a jumper in the lane to end the run but also picked up a technical foul.
Murray hit the free throw and then a turnaround to make it 85-70. Edwards came back into the game with four points and fed Mike Conley for a corner 3-pointer but Jokic’s floater gave the Nuggets a 91-79 lead heading into the fourth.
The Timberwolves outshot the Nuggets from the floor and beyond the arc, but Denver rode Murray’s free throw prowess to outscore Minnesota, 30-14, from the line. The Nuggets made 30-of-33 free throws (90.9%).
