The reigning champion Nuggets and the Timberwolves draw with a 115-107 road victory in Game 4. Stats, highlights, scores.

After losing the first two games of the Western Conference semifinals at home in a humiliating manner, the Denver Nuggets were far from finished. On Sunday night in Game 4, the Nuggets defeated the Timberwolves 115-107 to tie the series. Nikola Jokic scored 16 of his 35 points in the fourth quarter, and Aaron Gordon added 27 points on 11-for-12 shooting. The Nuggets, the reigning champions, rode a buzzer-beating swish from behind half court to collect 12 of Jamal Murray’s 19 points in the third quarter. The Wolves’ deficit was only below double digits for the second half, totaling 3:19.

With a 16-for-25 shooting effort, Anthony Edwards scored 44 points in yet another outstanding performance for Minnesota, setting a new franchise postseason record. But for the second straight game at home, the Wolves lost despite having a 42-31 rebounding advantage. Karl-Anthony Towns shot just 5 for 18 from the field for 13 points and 12 rebounds, Rudy Gobert came alive in the closing minutes to score 11 points and pull down 14 boards, and Mike Conley scored 15 points. For the second consecutive game, the Wolves were still right behind them at home. The first half ended with eight straight points for the Nuggets in twenty seconds, capped by an unbelievable heave by Murray. Gordon didn’t miss until 3:39 remained. Above all, he initiated the harassment of Towns and even alternated attempts to slow Edwards down.

The Wolves suffered a 27-point loss as a result of their three days off between Games 2 and 3, and coach Chris Finch said they were feeling “fat and lazy” following all the praise they had received for their performance in Denver. To keep the audience continuously roaring, they had to immediately reintroduce their edge, and Edwards led that response with diligence. With Gordon and Jokic splitting the point guard duties to lessen the load on Murray and his strained left calf muscle, the 2020 first overall draft pick scored nine points in the first four and a half minutes before Murray even touched the ball.

As the Nuggets fully anticipated, Edwards was on a mission to will the Wolves to victory following a quiet Game 3. He hit from all over the court, so their loading up on him in the lane wasn’t enough, but the other Wolves consistently fell short of forcing the Nuggets to pay for leaving them open. Not only did they miss corner threes, but also tip-ins at the basket. Towns missed his first seven shots, and although he never wavered in his effort or defence, he was a disaster when it came to getting the ball in the hoop and infrequently drew the fouls he advocated for.

During the first two games, the Wolves displayed their league-best defence and remarkable depth, but the Nuggets duplicated that strategy away from home. When their bench players and supplementary scorers are making their jumpers, they are quite difficult to defeat. A combined 8 for 11 from 3-point range was scored by Gordon, Justin Holiday (10 points), Christian Braun (11 points), and Reggie Jackson (six points). Between the first and second quarters, they went on a 26-4 run, and Gobert, the four-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year, scored all but five of those points while he was on the bench.