Another dominant performance by the Minnesota Timberwolves has the reigning but reeling NBA champion Denver Nuggets on the cusp of a stunning early exit from the playoffs. Anthony Edwards and Karl-Anthony Towns led the short-handed Timberwolves to a 106-80 blowout of the Nuggets for a 2-0 lead in their Western Conference semifinal series. Games 3 and 4 are in Minneapolis this weekend. The Timberwolves have won all six of their playoff games. The Nuggets have trailed by large margins in all seven of theirs. They bounced back against the Lakers but haven’t cracked the code against Minnesota.
Jalen Brunson scored 43 points, becoming the fourth player in NBA history with four straight 40-point games in the postseason, and the New York Knicks beat the Indiana Pacers 121-117 in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference semifinals. Brunson had 21 in the fourth quarter, rallying the Knicks after they trailed by nine early in the period. He joined Hall of Famers Jerry West, who had six consecutive 40-point games in the postseason, and Michael Jordan and Bernard King, who both had four. Donte DiVincenzo hit the tiebreaking 3-pointer with 40 seconds remaining and scored 25 for the Knicks. Myles Turner led the Pacers with 23 points.