Jaden McDaniels Scores 32 As Timberwolves Eliminate Nuggets — Nba Live

Jaden McDaniels scored a career-high 32 points and closed Minnesota’s 110-98 win over Denver with two free throws, and nba live the Timberwolves ended the Nuggets’ season on Thursday. The sixth-seeded Wolves won the series 4-2 and moved into the Western Conference semifinals.

McDaniels Finishes Denver

McDaniels carried the scoring load for Minnesota while Anthony Edwards sat out with injury, giving the Timberwolves a different path than the one they expected when the playoffs began. He finished with 32 points, the biggest number on the floor and the one Denver could not answer.

The game stayed tight in Minneapolis. There was no double-digit lead until the final moments, and Minnesota still had to keep working against Nikola Jokic, who scored 28 points and got 14 of them in the third quarter.

Jokic And The Game 4 Edge

Denver had already spent part of the series dealing with Jokic’s Game 4 ejection for unsportsmanlike conduct after a shoving match, a moment that shifted the tenor of the matchup before Thursday’s elimination game even tipped. On Thursday, he said the Nuggets “just didn’t do a good job” and added, “I needed to play better. I must play better,” after the loss.

Minnesota led 57-50 at halftime and kept the margin from slipping away after the break. Chris Finch called the night “a great night” and said, “It’s a great victory for us. Hopefully … we’ve got 12 more to go,” while adding, “We came into these playoffs not trying to beat Denver, but trying to win a championship.”

Spurs Wait Next

The result sends Minnesota into the Western Conference semifinals against the San Antonio Spurs. For Denver, the run ends in six games after a series in which the Nuggets never found a clean answer once Minnesota settled in and McDaniels took control at the finish.