After their two home defeats which left the Nuggets back to 2 wins everywhere, the Wolves showed up in Denver without Mike Conley, hampered by a painful Achilles tendon. In his absence, it is Nickeil Alexander-Walker (14 points) who starts, and behind his address from afar and that of Karl-Anthony Towns (23 points, 6 rebounds, 4 assists), Minnesota is well into its match. Except that opposite, Nikola Jokic responded by scoring 8 of his 12 points in the paint to give the Nuggets the advantage (28-26).
A 5-0 from Rudy Gobert (18 points, 11 rebounds, 2 blocks) and Anthony Edwards (18 points, 5/15 shots, 8 assists) puts the Wolves in front, but the two teams do not let go of each other. (37-37). This second quarter is dominated by the two defenses. Jamal Murray (16 points, 7/14 on shots) and Michael Porter Jr. (6 points, 2/10 on shots) miss 11 of their 14 shots, but Minnesota keeps losing balls.
They lost 8 in the period, including three in a row which allowed Nikola Jokic and Christian Braun (10 points) to launch a 9-2 (46-39). With Edwards at 1/8 on shots at the break, it was Alexander-Walker and Monte Morris who allowed the Wolves to remain as best they could in ambush (50-44).
Nikola “Olajuwon” Jokic
Chris Finch's men return to the field by increasing the tempo. Five points from Towns launch an 11-3 which forces Mike Malone to call a timeout after only two minutes of play (55-53). The response from his players is scathing. 11-2 in less than two minutes behind Jokic's reading of the game and the Jamal Murray – Aaron Gordon duo (18 points, 10 rebounds, 5 assists) at the finish (64-57)! Behind a demonstration from the triple MVP, the Nuggets do not release the pressure and go to +14 against the helpless Wolves despite the start of Anthony Edwards (88-74).
With Jokic on the bench, Minnesota revives but the Serbian's return to play is enough to kill the match. Two winning shots from Kentavious Caldwell-Pope (16 points, 4/5 from 3-point range) and a dunk from Jokic in transition finished an 8-0 which put Denver at +18 (98-80)! The steamroller of the reigning champions has found its cruising speed and it will take an XXL performance from the Wolves to get a Game 7.
WHAT YOU MUST REMEMBER
– Nikola Jokic’s masterpiece. The three-time MVP hit it hard last night, finishing the game with 40 points, 13 assists, 7 rebounds, and no turnovers to lead the Nuggets to a third straight victory. Jokic set the tone from the start of the match by being ultra aggressive, with 12 points in the first quarter. He returned to the locker room with 19 points and 8 assists. However, he saved the best for later in a simply incredible third period. Despite all the efforts of Rudy Gobert, Karl-Anthony Towns, and Kyle Anderson, he scored 16 points on 6/7 shooting and distributed 4 assists. The pivot carried out a series of actions, each more dazzling than the last, controlling all aspects of the match in the process.
– Anthony Edwards in the tough. After his 44 points in Game 4, the Nuggets defense decided to make Ant Man's life difficult. With the absence of Mike Conley, Denver sent traps on pick & roll and two-handed takes on the Minnesota star to force him to let go. It took Edwards half a time to find the solution. He returned to the locker room with 5 points at 1/8 on shots and 3 lost balls. He started the second half being more incisive (13 points, 4/7 shots, 7 assists) but it was too little too late to respond to Nikola Jokic's performance.
– Nuggets more diligent. More skillful from afar (47% against 30%), dominant in the racket (62-48), less wasteful (12 lost balls against 14), and more effective on the counterattack (16-4), the Nuggets made a copy of champions while the Wolves failed on the details which are expensive in the playoffs. The last minute absence of Mike Conley, leader and stabilizer of their attack, hurt them. Minnesota needs to regain its offense to hope to win Game 6. And that starts with their defense. During their three victories, the Nuggets shot at 53%, 57%, and 55% shooting success. The Wolves must bring down this percentage to attack against a defense that is not in place.
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How to read the stats? Min = Minutes; Shots = Successful shots / Attempted shots; 3pts = 3-points / 3-points attempted; LF = free throws made / free throws attempted; O = offensive rebound; D=defensive rebound; T = Total rebounds; Pd = assists; Fte: Personal fouls; Int = Intercepts; Bp = Lost balls; Ct: Against; +/- = Point differential when the player is on the field; Pts = Points; Eval: player evaluation calculated from positive actions – negative actions.
