DENVER — Minnesota has a path to beat Denver, even without Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo.
But the formula involves doing almost none of the things the Timberwolves put forth in Game 5 in Denver.
With a chance to close out the series, Minnesota was sloppy and undisciplined on both ends of the floor. As a result, they were raced off of it.
Denver dominated the final two quarters to beat the Wolves 125-113 on its home court on Monday to trim the Wolves’ series advantage to 3-2.
Game 6 is Thursday night at Target Center. Tipoff will either be at 8 p.m. or 8:30 p.m. CT.
Minnesota will need to be far better to close the series out on its home floor. The Timberwolves turned the ball over 25 times on Monday, which led to 35 Denver points.
Easy buckets going the other way allowed for Denver’s role players, who’ve struggled for much of the series, to gain confidence.
Spencer Jones scored 20 points. Cam Johnson had 18. Christian Braun earned a technical foul for repeatedly pointing at Jaden McDaniels after dunking on the Wolves’ wing.
McDaniels, who’s been a lightning rod throughout the series, was showered with “Jaden sucks” chants by the Denver faithful.
The Minneapolis crowd will get its chance to respond on Thursday, as will the Wolves.